Chapter 830: Ten Thousand Li Pursuit

"I'm fine now," the Pearl Empress said, gently clasping Jiang Fan's hand. Her voice gradually calmed, but Jiang Fan could feel her palm trembling.

Jiang Fan understood. Having already lost a daughter, she couldn't bear to lose a son as well.

"Sister Yizhu," Jiang Fan said, "let's head to the spot where the sea currents first appeared."

The Pearl Empress nodded, then immediately summoned the strongest members of her palace to investigate.

Wei Wuji also arrived upon hearing the news. "Yizhu, don't worry, I'm here," he said. "When it comes to finding people, my Myriad Forms Void Realm possesses unique abilities."

A glimmer of light appeared in the Pearl Empress's crystal eyes upon hearing this. The Myriad Forms Void Realm's legacy was exceptionally unique. It included a divine ability called 'Tracing Light to its Source,' which was considered the top tracking secret art in the Grand Cang Province. Back then, even the renowned Daoist Six Paths had risked infiltrating the Myriad Forms Void Realm to acquire this technique.

"Old Wei, I'm counting on you this time," the Pearl Empress said, her eyes welling with gratitude and her complete hope resting on him. When her third princess went missing years ago, she had mobilized the entire sea demon tribe for a search, but it yielded nothing. This time, she feared relying solely on human effort would also be fruitless. All her hope now lay with Wei Wuji.

Wei Wuji was overjoyed. For years, this was the first time the Pearl Empress had called him by anything other than "Tower Master Wei." This incident might be the key to opening her heart and bridging the distance between them. Whether he could win over the Pearl Empress depended entirely on this moment.

"Alright! I'll risk my life to find the Crown Prince for you!" Wei Wuji declared righteously. Secretly, he even felt a slight relief that the Crown Prince was missing; otherwise, he wouldn't have such a perfect opportunity.

Soon after, the group arrived at the location where the Crown Prince had disappeared. The seabed there was ravaged, as if swept by a tornado, leaving almost no clues behind.

Wei Wuji hovered in the water and announced, "Watch this!" "Tracing Light to its Source!"

He formed a hand seal, conjuring a palm-sized, round crystal chip. Propelled by the powerful energy of his Nascent Soul, the chip split into two, then four, then eight… Within a dozen breaths, the chips multiplied densely.

"Go!" he commanded softly, and all the chips flew continuously in every direction, dividing further as they went. These chips acted as Wei Wuji's eyes, transmitting all the surrounding scenery back to his consciousness.

This method was many times more efficient than relying on limited human search parties. The Pearl Empress crossed her arms, her eyes filled with anticipation.

While observing, Wei Wuji said with a touch of self-satisfaction, "'Tracing Light to its Source' can survey an area within three hundred li." "If we don't find anything within a three-hundred-li radius of this spot, we'll immediately move to the next location and continue searching." "Today, I will comb through the entire East Sea if I have to, until I find him."

The Pearl Empress nodded repeatedly, silently watching Wei Wuji and hoping he would bring good news.

"Sister Yizhu, come here for a moment," Jiang Fan whispered from not far away. The Pearl Empress turned to see Jiang Fan crouching beneath some tall coral, only his head visible. He was waving persistently, signaling her to approach.

At that moment, the Pearl Empress's mind was entirely focused on the information Wei Wuji was relaying. She was anxious; she had no time to be squatting furtively with Jiang Fan among the coral reefs.

But seeing Jiang Fan wave again, she considered it, then walked over, slightly agitated. "What is it?" she asked. "What are you doing crouching here?"

Jiang Fan glanced at Wei Wuji from a distance and said, "I want to show you something." "Just for you, keep it a secret."

Seeing Jiang Fan's mysterious demeanor, she suppressed her anxiety and went behind the coral. She crouched down with him, and saw that he was holding a strange, eye-shaped artifact. On its surface, underwater scenes flashed by rapidly, like a fleeting slideshow.

"A treasure that monitors its surroundings... Mmm..." Jiang Fan quickly covered the Pearl Empress's mouth. He pointed at Wei Wuji, then at the Sky-Monitoring Mirror. The Pearl Empress then realized she had almost revealed Jiang Fan's secret. Her face filled with apology, she whispered, "I'm sorry, my mind is too jumbled right now."

Jiang Fan glanced at Wei Wuji, noticing that he was entirely absorbed in collecting the surrounding scenery. He breathed a slight sigh of relief. It was better not to reveal such a spiritual artifact in front of an unfamiliar Nascent Soul cultivator.

"I'm not familiar with the underwater terrain of your East Sea," Jiang Fan said softly, concentrating on the Sky-Monitoring Mirror. "Keep an eye out for any terrain that looks unusual."

The Pearl Empress looked at the scenes flashing within the mirror, then at Jiang Fan's focused expression. So, he was silently helping her search for the Crown Prince. She had mistakenly thought he was hiding there furtively. Realizing this, she felt both ashamed and touched.

Regardless of whether Jiang Fan's artifact could be as useful as Wei Wuji's divine ability, she resolved to thank Jiang Fan properly afterward. With her mind made up, she settled down to watch the images in the mirror.

Slowly, she frowned. "Where is this?" she murmured. "It doesn't look like anywhere near the palace."

She knew the underwater terrain near the palace so well she could identify it blindfolded. But the terrain currently displayed was clearly not nearby.

Jiang Fan responded, speechless, "How long has it been? The three-hundred-li radius around the palace was surveyed ages ago." The Pearl Empress looked up at Wei Wuji, who was still meticulously searching within the three-hundred-li radius. Then she looked back at Jiang Fan. For a moment, she was stunned. Could this spiritual artifact truly be more powerful than Wei Wuji's 'Tracing Light to its Source'?

Suddenly, the Pearl Empress spotted a deep underwater trench. "The Black Eye Trench!" she exclaimed, then added, astonished, "Isn't that a thousand five hundred li away?"

She was shocked. Wei Wuji was still struggling to search within a three-hundred-li radius, while Jiang Fan had already surveyed an area a thousand five hundred li away! What kind of spiritual artifact was this? It was incredibly defying!

Then, excitement surged through her, her heart pounding. Having previously felt no hope, she was suddenly filled with limitless optimism. She nervously watched the images in the Sky-Monitoring Mirror, not daring to miss a single frame.

Suddenly, a fleeting human figure appeared in one of the images. "Someone!" she gasped, nervously grabbing Jiang Fan's arm. Her fingers gripped so tightly it made Jiang Fan wince.

Jiang Fan also noticed the unusual image and immediately paused it. It showed a patch of dense seaweed. As Jiang Fan continuously magnified the scene, the figures finally became clear: a man and a woman hidden among the seaweed. The woman was an exceptionally alluring and beautiful sea demon. The man was also strikingly handsome, dressed in luxurious attire, appearing to be a noble among the sea demon tribe, with a pair of piercing eyes.

Just as Jiang Fan was about to ask, he felt his arm loosen. Without needing to look, he knew the Pearl Empress was now wearing a deeply disappointed expression. There was no doubt that neither of the two figures was the Crown Prince.

Immediately afterward, Jiang Fan felt a slight pressure on his shoulder. The Pearl Empress rested her forehead against his head. Soon, a warm, moist sensation, transmitted through the protective air bubbles around them, reached him. "Jiang Fan," she whispered, "what if we can't find the Crown Prince?"

Having no hope was painful, but giving hope to someone in despair only to snatch it away was even more agonizing. For a moment, Jiang Fan didn't know how to comfort her. They had already extended the search to a thousand five hundred li. Even if the abductor had been continuously moving with the Crown Prince, they wouldn't have gone much further. Yet, there were still no clues, unless the abductor had taken the Crown Prince out of the seabed and into the outside world.

At that moment, a thought suddenly struck Jiang Fan. "Wait!" he exclaimed. "Those two aren't right!"