Free Web NovelChapter 252: Chapter 227: Black Tortoise Calm Sea, Golden Core Attacks, Foundation Establishment Lurks
A thousand men can blot out the clouds;
Ten thousand become a shoreless ocean.
Over three thousand Foundation Establishment Cultivators marched in a vast, mighty procession. Accompanied by Flying Boats and Demon Beasts, the spectacle was magnificent. Not only did the Cultivators within Primordial City look on in awe, but even the Major Cultivators traveling with the army had never seen such a formation in their lives.
Some were terrified;
Some felt their blood boil with excitement;
And some yearned for it with all their being.
’If a great war breaks out, even a Golden Core Cultivator might not be able to withstand a simultaneous attack from three thousand Foundation Establishment Cultivators! No wonder the Earth Element Star promotes Cultivation for all. With enough numbers, even ants can kill an elephant!’
Sitting on the Little Chick’s back, Chen Che couldn’t help but survey the crowd.
Leading the procession was the Primordial Sect’s Spiritual Boat. Following close behind were the major affiliated families of the Major Sect, each of these great families possessing a Golden Core True Master.
’Twenty-nine Golden Cores... I wonder what kind of force the Star-Picking Sect has brought...’
Chen Che grumbled inwardly.
’Though it looks like only four or five thousand people, this isn’t some ordinary village brawl. To a mortal, this would be no different than a world war...’
The flight lasted for a full seven days.
At first, Chen Che had the leisure to observe his surroundings, but he later simply entered the Meng Family’s Flying Boat to focus on his Cultivation.
On the morning of the ninth day, a series of shouts broke the quiet.
"We’re here!"
"We’ve reached the Black Tortoise Calm Sea!"
Hearing the calls, Chen Che emerged from the cabin and gazed into the distance.
The Black Tortoise Calm Sea was just a region of the ocean. It was named so because a Demon Beast resembling a giant serpent entwined with a tortoise was said to have once appeared there.
The Black Tortoise Calm Sea didn’t look much different from any other part of the ocean, except for two small islands flanking its entrance. One of them was bustling with noise and activity; clearly, the people from the Star-Picking Sect had already arrived.
’The Undersea Palace is somewhere in this area?’
Chen Che wondered.
"Che’er!"
Just as he was pondering, Meng Changtu turned to look at him.
"Father-in-law?"
Chen Che asked as he entered the cabin.
"When two Golden Core Sects negotiate, no one can predict the outcome. If they fall out, blood will surely flow like a river. Remember, don’t lose your head and throw your life away for the Primordial Sect. Your first priority is to stay alive. But you can’t flee before a fight even starts, or you’ll be held accountable afterward..."
Meng Changtu said softly,
"Don’t mess with those who are covered in Magical Artifacts. They might be the junior of some Golden Core True Master from the Star-Picking Sect..."
Chen Che nodded.
The summary was simple:
’Prioritize self-preservation above all. Fight when I have the advantage, run when I don’t. And even if I run, I can’t give the Primordial Sect any reason to punish me.’
’If I have to fight, pick the easy targets. Don’t go after the descendants of important figures...’
"When the time comes, you stick with me."
Chen Che instructed his father-in-law, but Meng Changtu waved a hand dismissively and said directly, "No need. I’m more experienced than you. If a war breaks out, just take care of yourself."
’Everyone’s a pragmatist!’
Chen Che felt a little more at ease, but then a voice from outside the cabin called out:
"On this expedition to negotiate with the Star-Picking Sect, should a fight break out, for every Foundation Establishment Cultivator killed, you will be rewarded with one thousand Spirit Stones! The Primordial Sect will not take a single piece of the spoils of war; all loot belongs to the one who earns it."
’...Wealth truly moves the hearts of men!’
Hearing the excited shouts, Chen Che shook his head inwardly.
He had no interest in this bounty, but the same couldn’t be said for others.
Just then, the leading Flying Boat of the Primordial Sect descended like a dragon onto the large island opposite the Star-Picking Sect.
The entire procession changed direction and immediately followed.
’The Star-Picking Sect has a lot of people, too. This is bad, it looks like they have more Golden Core True Masters. If a real fight breaks out, the Primordial Sect won’t have the advantage...’
After stepping out of the cabin, Chen Che gazed at the opposite island, his mind racing with calculations.
As if showing off, thirty-four Golden Cores from the Star-Picking Sect stood suspended in the void.
They sat there, each figure appearing to be over a hundred zhang tall. The one in the center was even more immense, a full two hundred zhang, with a white, beardless face. Of course, this was merely an illusion created by their projected True Essence, a sensory distortion caused by the vast difference in power between them and the onlookers.
’Is that largest figure in the middle the Star-Picking Sect’s Sect Leader, Du Zhongyi? This is terrible. They have five more Golden Core True Masters than us. If their overall strength is greater, Foundation Establishment Cultivators like us will be nothing but cannon fodder, with no chance to escape!’
The thought had barely crossed Chen Che’s mind when a magnificent voice resounded through the air.
The voice descended from the sky like a heavenly decree:
"Primordial True Master, you are two days late."
HUMMM—
Amidst the heavenly voice, twenty-nine beams of Spiritual Light erupted from within the island. As if in response, massive figures appeared in the sky one after another. However, an old man with white hair, a white beard, and white robes sat in the center, his True Essence aura completely concealed.
’The Primordial Ancestor?’
Chen Che looked up; the man’s posture made his identity clear.
"For those like us with an eight-hundred-year lifespan, a difference of two days is nothing, especially when a heaven-shaking opportunity is at stake!"
The Primordial Ancestor’s voice was unhurried:
"Let’s stick to the old rules. Everything in the palace, we split it fifty-fifty."
"Fifty-fifty?"
The words had barely faded when Du Zhongyi’s mocking voice rang out:
"On what grounds? The twenty-odd Golden Cores behind you? Or your own seven-hundred-year-old bones? From this day on, the rules are changing. We’ll split it seventy-thirty. You get three parts, I get seven!"
’The Star-Picking Sect is playing hardball, demanding an extra twenty percent just like that. Who would agree to that...’
A glint flashed in Chen Che’s eyes, and then came a moment of realization.
Although he hadn’t even seen the Undersea Palace, for it to mobilize two great Golden Core Influences like this, it must be the Cave Mansion of a Nascent Soul True Monarch. Even one-tenth of its treasures would be a staggering amount.
A commotion rippled through the Major Cultivators below, but it quickly subsided. In the presence of so many Golden Core True Masters, the Foundation Establishment Cultivators deliberately suppressed their emotions.
"The rules are not something you can change just because you want to. In the centuries since I founded my Sect, this is how it has always been with the other Major Sects. If you want to change them, you first have to ask if the other Sects will agree. If your founding ancestor were here, I might give him some face..."
Although the Primordial Ancestor’s voice was gentle, it carried a greater pressure than his opponent’s, silencing the heavens and the earth:
"But you... are not enough."
’What is his Cultivation Realm? Late-stage Golden Core? Great Perfection?’
Chen Che felt his sea of consciousness tremble. He was shocked, but also couldn’t help but grumble internally.
’So this is how two Major Sects negotiate.’
’It doesn’t seem all that different from those ragtag gangs in Jinyun Valley. First, a show of force. The stronger party makes their demand, and the weaker party backs down if they know they’re outmatched. Of course, if you’re unwilling to back down, the only thing left is to let your fists do the talking.’
’Either one side bows their head first, or both sides call a truce.’
Of course, the negotiations weren’t that simple. The two sides had undoubtedly held countless discussions in private. This was likely the final round.
"I’m not enough?"
Du Zhongyi sneered. "Since you feel that way, today I’ll show you whether I am enough or not..."
Suddenly, from the Star-Picking Sect’s side, the beardless old man swung his palm like a Divine Spirit. With a mere lift of his hand, the seawater churned and rose, forming a colossal palm over a thousand zhang wide. It pressed down on the island, blotting out the sky from a distance. It was like the Heaven-Overturning Seal unleashed by Guang Chengzi!
This single palm strike was enough to shatter the island.
The Primordial Ancestor remained as still as a mountain, simply pointing a finger in the air. The giant palm instantly shattered as if it had struck a reef. Without True Essence to support it, the palm dissolved into a raging torrent and crashed back into the sea.
BANG!
The two had exchanged blows so quickly that most of the Foundation Establishment Cultivators hadn’t even processed what happened before the move was over.
But this was only the beginning.
Without any warning, the Golden Cores behind both leaders also attacked. Like tigers released from their cages, nearly fifty figures, each a hundred zhang tall, crossed the sea in an instant and charged at each other. In the blink of an eye, the two forces collided.
WHOOSH!
When the fifty-odd Golden Cores attacked, the entire ocean began to tremble.
With a deafening roar, the sea’s surface erupted into a monstrous wave. It radiated from the center of the clash, sweeping across a radius of several thousand zhang. As the tide surged, the Foundation Establishment Cultivators on the island were tossed about like duckweed in a raging flood and swept into the water.
Most of the Major Cultivators, however, charged toward their opponents as the seawater surged toward them.
...
’They’re fighting already? Not even a few more words of negotiation? These Golden Core True Masters are so short-tempered...’
Meng Changtu was about to leap into the air when he glanced over and saw that Chen Che had already held his breath and concealed his True Essence, making his Realm seem low as he let the massive wave carry him out to sea.
His father-in-law froze for a moment. ’Why didn’t I think of that?’
By the time he came to his senses and prepared to follow the tide into the sea, he was a step too late. An enemy Cultivator was already lunging at him.
"AHH!"
"KILL!"
Cries of battle now rose from all over the sea.
Chen Che, letting the current carry him, glanced up. The two sides were already locked in a chaotic melee. The sky, the island, the surface of the sea—everywhere was filled with the figures of Cultivators. It was a complete mess, with no strategy or order to speak of.
’No matter how high your Cultivation is, you can’t possibly keep track of the entire battlefield or defend against Flying Swords and Talismans coming from every direction.’
’If this battle lasts for three days and three nights, at least seventy percent of the Foundation Establishment Cultivators from the Primordial Sect and the Star-Picking Sect will die...’
Chen Che dove deeper into the sea, leaning against a reef and listening to the commotion on the surface.
’Hu Haiqing?’
A sweep of his Divine Sense revealed Hu Haiqing leading the Hu Family Cultivators in a Sword Array, frantically slaughtering members of the Star-Picking Sect. He was even more ferocious than on the night he had besieged Chen Che. Beneath the Sword Array, several Major Cultivators were no match for a single clash.
’He’s trying to earn merit...’
Chen Che’s eyes narrowed slightly. ’After being sold out by his brother-in-law, he has almost no way out. His only option is to kill enemies and earn merit to get noticed by the Primordial Sect’s upper echelon.’
SPLASH!
Suddenly, a tremendous splash echoed as several figures plunged frantically into the sea.
"Croc the Third! Quick, run...!"
A shrill cry came at the same time.
He looked up and saw two Major Cultivators get their bodies blasted to pieces in an instant, unable to even counterattack. A mist of blood spread through the water, sending the surrounding schools of fish fleeing in a frenzy.
’A Cultivator from the Star-Picking Sect? Only Foundation Establishment Fourth Layer?’
Chen Che narrowed his eyes.
In the spreading cloud of blood, a Major Cultivator stood atop a Crocodile Flood Dragon. Dressed in tight-fitting clothes and wielding a Fishing Spear, he moved through the sea as if it were his natural element, ruthlessly hunting down others.
’What is that Great Demon?’
The Crocodile Flood Dragon beneath him was seven to eight zhang long, resembling both a serpent and a crocodile, and it was incredibly fast in the water. The Major Cultivators relying on the Water Avoidance Technique had no hope of escaping its pursuit. In just a few breaths, the last Major Cultivator who had fled into the water also died horribly in the creature’s jaws.
"Haha, excellent!"
Croc the Third laughed maniacally. With a wave of his hand, he seized his victim’s Weapon and Storage Ring, his eyes filled with excitement.
Opportunities to hunt Major Cultivators openly were few and far between.
Killing a single one usually required months, or even years, of selecting a target and setting a trap, and even then, it could end in failure. How could it compare to the thrill of today? From the very start of the battle, he had keenly noticed that the newly-established Foundation Establishment Cultivators couldn’t withstand the raging tide and were swept directly into the sea.
So, he had followed them into the sea to hunt.
"Hm? There’s a little mouse from the Primordial Sect hiding here. Haha, my luck is pretty good..."
The Crocodile Flood Dragon beneath his feet sniffed the water and quickly locked onto a spot. Croc the Third’s eyes shifted, and upon seeing a cultivator in green robes hiding behind the reef, he broke into a wide grin.
Chen Che looked up, meeting his gaze.
Instantly, Croc the Third’s smile vanished. He felt his scalp tingle, as if he had just been targeted by a colossal beast from the deep sea.
