In the farthest depths of the Ruins of Return, there was another vortex connecting to the sea.
The merfolk queen arrived at the vortex and dove straight into the pitch-black seawater. The golden glow from her scales illuminated the darkness slightly as she pressed forward.
She finally reached the center of the dark waters, where an enormous mountain of corals glowed softly, lighting up the surroundings. Upon closer inspection, it resembled a palace.
"Lord Wuchao, I seek your assistance."
The merfolk queen was highly respected among the various sea demons. Yet, outside this coral palace, she behaved like a humble junior.
Rumble.
The colossal coral mountain trembled, and after a brief moment, a gap appeared. From within the darkness, a long, gray object emerged. It resembled a tentacle, but its surface was covered in dark, dull scales.
The tentacle extended toward the merfolk queen, twisting and growing into the upper body of an elderly man. His hair was sparse, and his beard was snowy-white. His age was impossible to discern, and even his eyes seemed clouded by time.
As he recalled her, he said, "You are... the merfolk queen of this generation, aren't you? A descendant of the Hallowed Mother, yes? What is the matter?"
"The Sea Master of the Ruins of Return cult seeks to resurrect the Hallowed Mother," said the merfolk queen. "He has kept many things from me and now plans to use my daughter as a vessel. I do not know what to do, so I have come to seek your counsel, Lord Wuchao."If you side with him, I will sacrifice myself as the vessel for the Hallowed Mother. But if you are against this, you are the only one in the South Sea who can stop him!"
"Resurrect the Hallowed Mother?" the elder known as Wuchao uttered. His pupils dilated as he went silent for a long time before saying, "That path leads only to death..."
The merfolk queen's gaze lifted. "Lord Wuchao, do you... disagree?"
"If the resurrection of the Hallowed Mother were truly possible, would countless sea demons not have already attempted it over the past tens of thousands of years?" Lord Wuchao said with a grave expression. "I was born during the reign of the Dragon God and saw the splendor of the dragons with my own eyes. That is why I know about the fate of those True Dragons who once sought to resurrect the Dragon God...
"This is something we must never attempt..."
"Then, Lord Wuchao, please stop him at once! If we wait any longer, who knows how many sea demon lives he will sacrifice!" the merfolk queen pleaded urgently.
"Very well…" Lord Wuchao nodded and softly called out, "Sea Master—"
The sound of his voice reverberated, and the dark seawater trembled, rippling outward, sweeping across the vast ocean until it reached a distant pavilion.
"Hm?"
In the pavilion, the Sea Master, whose anger had been simmering, grew even angrier upon hearing the call.
"That old... old squid, what does he want with me now?" he muttered. "I suppose I should pay him a visit."
Huo Tianya, standing before him, asked, "Squid? Is that the one who has reigned supreme for tens of thousands of years? The one who none can compete with…"
"That's him." the Sea Master nodded. "He was once the most powerful of all sea demons and one of the founders of the Ruins of Return cult. Nowadays, he rarely leaves that filthy sea of his. I wonder why he's calling for me now."
"Leave matters here to me," Huo Tianya said calmly. "The one who abducted that Mount Shu disciple must be Immortal Yuan Lu, Xuan Yinzi, or perhaps an outsider. Let me visit the West Sea and Mount Shu, and I'll know immediately if there's anything wrong with them."
"That’s not the point!" the Sea Master shot back. "Whether that disciple of the Mount Shu Sect is here or not doesn't matter. What matters is that the Azure Wave Lamp must not be lost!"
"Chu Liang plays a critical role. Heh, don’t worry about it," Huo Tianya chuckled as he spoke. "Just stay home and wait in peace. The land demon's divine envoy will soon deliver it to your doorstep."
The Sea Master and Huo Tianya left the pavilion together. As they turned back, the Sea Master’s eyes fell on the wall, which had just been patched but was now gnawed through again. With a flick of his hand, he conjured a ball of black light, casting it over the pavilion, sealing it from above and leaving only the front entrance open.
Only then did he leave with peace of mind.
…
Chu Liang gazed at the dark, misty halo surrounding the pavilion and said with a frown, "There's another layer of restriction outside the pavilion."
The pavilion was now only accessible through the front entrance. To break the golden pool restraint set by the merfolk queen, Tuntun had eaten through it. She had eaten so much that she fell asleep. Even if Chu Liang woke her up, Tuntun couldn’t do anything about the newly added restriction, as she could only chew through physical objects and was helpless against this intangible barrier.
"This restriction is powerful. I believe that eighth-realm greater demon placed it here. If I unleash the Demon-Slaying Sword without considering the consequences, there’s a chance I can break it," Wang Xuanling said. "But it would undoubtedly cause a huge commotion."
"I’ll go in through the front entrance and take a look," Chu Liang said as he pulled out the mask of the demon divine envoy.
"That’s far too dangerous..." Wang Xuanling warned.
"It’s fine," Chu Liang said with a reassuring smile. "I have ways to save myself. If that eighth-realm greater demon acts, you two should retreat immediately. Don’t worry about me."
Wang Xuanling and Xu Ziyang didn’t know where Chu Liang’s confidence came from, but hearing him speak with such certainty, they believed him.
If he said he had a way, then he definitely did.
When it came to this, the teacher and the disciple of Jade Sword Peak shared that same confidence.
As Chu Liang made his way toward the front entrance, he was still mulling over what excuse he could use to get inside the pavilion.
Before he even had a chance to knock, the door opened by itself.
The shrimp-headed and crab-clawed demonic monsters greeted him with wide smiles, calling out loudly, "Honorable divine envoy, you’re here! We've been waiting for you day and night!"
"Ah..." Their enthusiasm caught Chu Liang off guard for a moment, but he quickly nodded. "I’m here."
"Please, come in! Come in!"
The shrimp soldier and crab general ushered Chu Liang inside without asking a single question or even inspecting the portrait of the South Sea's Hallowed Mother.
Their excitement resembled the joy of finding a long-lost father.
"I didn’t expect you to return so quickly! The demons in the Far West really move fast!" the shrimp-headed demonic monster said, barely pausing for breath. "But it’s unfortunate. The Sea Master had urgent matters and left. He told us to treat you well if you came."
"The Sea Master left?" Chu Liang’s brow arched slightly beneath his mask, and his tone carried a trace of displeasure. "How long until he returns?"
"Ah, hard to say," the crab-clawed demonic monster whispered. "Lord Wuchao summoned him suddenly. That place is quite far… But don’t worry, we’ll take good care of you! If you need anything, just let us know."
"Uh..." Chu Liang looked around, noticing the emptiness, and asked, "Wasn’t it lively here before? Where is everyone?"
"They’re all gone, haha," the shrimp-headed demonic monster replied, chuckling. "They were allies of the Sea Master. Once their business was done, they left. Usually, it’s just the two of us here."
"Oh…" Chu Liang nodded.
"Is there anything you need, honorable envoy?" the crab-clawed demonic monster asked as they seated him.
"I’d like something to eat," Chu Liang said with a nod.
"What would you like to eat?" the shrimp-headed demonic monster asked eagerly.
Chu Liang pulled off his mask, revealing a bright smile. "Seafood."
…
"All taken care of!" Chu Liang opened the door and waved over Wang Xuanling and the others.
Wang Xuanling, Xu Ziyang, and Princess Liange entered the pavilion with their faces filled with doubt and disbelief. Only upon stepping inside did they realize that the Sea Master was indeed not at home.
They hurried to the third floor, where they found the room with the large black toad. As expected, it was still there.
The moment Princess Liange saw the black toad, her shoulders trembled, and she shouted, "Golden Toad!"
It really is the Golden Toad! I was right, Chu Liang thought.
Chu Liang had guessed correctly, but he still felt confused. "Is your Golden Toad supposed to be black? Black is the new gold?"
"No! I think it's been poisoned…" Princess Liange said, her gaze filled with distress as she looked at the black Golden Toad. "That evil Sea Master! How dare he treat the Hallowed Mother’s envoy this way!"
"Let’s get it out of this restriction first. I might have a way to get this poison out of its system," Chu Liang said. As the words left his mouth, he said inwardly, I have a whip that I haven’t touched in six years.
It was only natural for Wang Xuanling to be the one to break the restriction.
With a steady hand, he raised the Demon-Slaying Sword and swung it downward, the blade slicing through the enchanted formation with a crisp, resonant sound.
"Let’s take it with us and handle it outside," Xu Ziyang said, wrapping the Golden Toad in a cloth bag and slinging it over his shoulder.
Both the teacher and disciple had come to instinctively understand that whenever they were with Chu Liang, they should step up and take on more of the physical work.
As they were about to leave, a knocking sound echoed from downstairs.
Knock, knock, knock.
Currently, they could only leave through the front entrance.
If there was someone at the door, there was no way they could escape.
"Hm?" Old Wang immediately tensed up. He lifted the Demon-Slaying Sword up and asked with a frown, "Should we fight our way out?"
"Hold on…" Chu Liang raised his hand. "Who knocks when they’re coming back home? It must be an outsider."
They gathered on the first floor, and with a sweep of their divine senses, they noticed two divine envoys of the demon race wearing bronze masks standing outside the door.
"Relax," Chu Liang’s mind raced as he quickly tossed a black robe to Xu Ziyang. "Senior Uncle, hide on the third floor with Princess Liange for now. Senior Brother Xu… for now, we’re sea demons."
With that, he pulled up his hood, opened the door with a hearty laugh, and called out, "Honorable divine envoys, you’re here! We've been waiting for you day and night!"
GLTD Alternate Universe's Thoughts
Translator: GT
We have decided to rename some terms. Sorry for the inconvenience caused.
Shadow-Bearer → Shadow Bearer
Great Dao of Chongming → Great Dao of the Bottomless Sea
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