Chapter 1986: Escape and the Dragon Palace

In an expanse of azure sea, under a clear, calm sky, a flock of blue-winged gulls flew high above.

A deserted island, over a hundred li in size, was densely covered with vegetation. Its terrain was higher in the south and lower in the north, dotted with dozens of hills of varying sizes.

Suddenly, a nearby sea area violently churned, and two dishevelled figures shot out from beneath the waves, landing on the sandy beach.

Wang Changsheng's face was pale, his body covered in multiple bloody scratches, and his aura was weak. Wang Ruyan's face was ashen, and a finger-sized blood hole in her left shoulder had stained most of her body crimson.

They had been pursued by seven Nascent Soul-stage alien cultivators. Fighting desperately to break through the encirclement, they had killed one alien and wounded four, though they themselves had also been injured by the aliens.

To escape, they had constantly changed direction along the way, evading the enemy's pursuit. Truth be told, neither Wang Changsheng nor Wang Ruyan knew their current location.

Though Wang Changsheng looked dishevelled, his injuries were not severe. As a body cultivator, his recovery would be relatively easier. Wang Ruyan's injuries, however, were more serious.

Wang Changsheng's divine sense swept across the deserted island. He found no alien cultivators or Fifth-tier demonic beasts, and only then did he breathe a sigh of relief.

“Let's go to the island to heal first.”

Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan transformed into two streaks of light and flew towards the mountain range in the center of the island.

Before long, they landed in a vast, easily accessible mountain valley. Not far away was a cave entrance over ten zhang in diameter, covered in green moss.

Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan entered. The cave was damp and dark, but after walking a few hundred paces, the path suddenly opened up, revealing a cavern over ten mu in size before them.

The cavern walls were rough and uneven. In a corner stood a blue fruit tree over ten zhang tall, bearing seven pale blue, oval fruits. A peculiar fragrance emanated from them.

A monstrous alien beast, as large as a small hill, lay sprawled beneath the fruit tree. Its entire body was covered in blue scales, its head resembled a lion's, and it had a row of sharp golden spines along its back, along with a pair of silver fleshy wings. Judging by its aura, it was a mid-Fourth-tier demonic beast.

Upon seeing Wang Changsheng, the beast let out a series of low roars.

Wang Changsheng snorted softly. He slammed his right fist into the void. A piercing whooshing sound filled the air, and the space warped and distorted. A misty blue fist-shadow shot out, carrying an earth-shattering momentum as it hurtled towards the beast.

The beast felt its body tense. It opened its massive maw and spat out a dazzling blue light, which struck at the blue fist-shadow.

Boom! A pained shriek echoed as the blue light was shattered by the blue fist-shadow. The fist-shadow then struck the beast, instantly pulverizing it into a bloody pulp, and even snapped the fruit tree.

Wang Changsheng flicked his sleeve. Over a hundred shimmering yellow formation flags flew out and vanished into the stone walls. He then took out a nine-sided yellow formation plate, its surface glowing with flickering runes.

He cast several incantations into it. The entire cavern began to subtly shake as numerous small stones tumbled down, and countless intricate yellow runes suddenly appeared on the stone walls.

With a flash of yellow light, a yellow earth wall suddenly appeared at the cave entrance, blocking it off completely.

“Wife, you should heal first! We've fled hundreds of millions of li; they surely won't pursue us here.”

Wang Changsheng said to Wang Ruyan. Wang Ruyan's injuries were more severe and required proper recuperation.

To evade the enemy's pursuit, they had fled hundreds of millions of li before finally stopping.

Wang Ruyan nodded, walked to a corner, and sat down cross-legged.

She took out a cyan porcelain bottle and poured out an emerald-green pill. The pill emitted a fragrant scent, and she swallowed it.

Wang Ruyan immediately circulated her cultivation to heal her wounds. Soon, a soft blue glow appeared on her body.

Wang Changsheng flipped his hand. Three storage rings of different colors appeared in his palm; these were spoils he had seized from the enemies. Two of the rings belonged to Human Nascent Soul cultivators, and one to a Beastman.

With a slight flick of his wrist, streaks of cyan, red, and yellow light flashed, and a large pile of items appeared on the ground.

Spirit treasures, Heavenly Spirit Treasures, talismans, refining materials, demon cores, spirit herbs, and more—the sheer quantity was beyond their imagination.

“Supreme-grade spirit stone!” Wang Changsheng exclaimed softly, his gaze falling on a crystalline blue spirit stone, a flicker of surprise in his eyes.

Only large spirit stone mines could possibly produce supreme-grade spirit stones. He had never obtained a single one when he was in the lower realms.

Supreme-grade spirit stones had a wide range of uses. They were primarily used for setting up high-grade formations, whether for offensive purposes or for protecting grand arrays.

He examined it carefully and found that one-tenth of the spiritual energy stored in this supreme-grade spirit stone had been used.

Wang Changsheng searched thoroughly, but unfortunately, he couldn't find a second supreme-grade spirit stone. It seemed the enemy had acquired this supreme-grade spirit stone by chance.

Besides the supreme-grade spirit stone, there were also six Heavenly Spirit Treasures, including a set called the Blazing Light Orbs. Among the over ten other spirit treasures, two pale silver jade pendants caught Wang Changsheng's attention.

The silver jade pendants shimmered with spiritual light, covered in intricate runes. The characters 'Jiaoyun' were inscribed on them.

Wang Changsheng picked up one of the silver jade pendants and infused it with spiritual power. A strong, fishy odor immediately surged out.

“A Jiaoyun Pendant! Combined with a Heavenly Illusion Pearl, it could disguise one as a Sea Clan member!”

Wang Changsheng muttered to himself. The Heavenly Illusion Pearl could alter a cultivator's aura and appearance, while the Jiaoyun Pendant could make a cultivator emit the aura of the Sea Clan. Used together, they could perfectly disguise someone as a Sea Clan member.

There was a considerable amount of miscellaneous refining materials, enough for Wang Changsheng to forge several low-grade Heavenly Spirit Treasures. What pleased him most were some materials for refining avatars, and a pale cyan parchment scroll with a topographical map inscribed on it.

He pondered for a moment, then flipped his hand and took out an exquisite jade box. He opened it to reveal a miniature Nascent Soul inside.

A shimmering talisman was affixed to the miniature Nascent Soul, whose expression was dispirited.

Wang Changsheng held the miniature Nascent Soul in one hand. A dazzling blue light surged from his palm, enveloping the miniature Nascent Soul.

The miniature Nascent Soul let out a shriek of agony and fainted.

After a while, Wang Changsheng's palm returned to normal. He placed the miniature Nascent Soul back into the jade box and put it away.

“Dragon Palace!”

Wang Changsheng muttered to himself. He had performed soul-searching on the miniature Nascent Soul, obtaining a lot of useful information.

This person was Huang Lizhi, a disciple of Daoist Jinfeng. Huang Lizhi had gone out to sea with Daoist Jinfeng to hunt demonic beasts when, by chance, they were captured by alien cultivators. To save their lives, the aliens had planted a restriction on them and sent them back to the Human race to gather intelligence.

Not long ago, Daoist Jinfeng reportedly acquired half of a Seventh-tier puppet beast. He intended to offer it to high-ranking alien cultivators in exchange for cultivation resources. Unexpectedly, Zhenhai Palace had already set their sights on them.

To visit a market city established by the Sea Clan, Daoist Jinfeng had specifically forged three Jiaoyun Pendants, rare treasures that could disguise one as a Sea Clan member.

The Sea Clan had established a market city beneath the sea. This market city was called Dragon Palace, and many rare items appeared there.

Wang Changsheng inspected each jade slip one by one, hoping to find useful information.