Asura Mad Emperor

Late in the night.

Within a certain underground secret room.

Two persons, strikingly similar in appearance to Liu Wan, gathered together, but each of their cheeks bizarrely sprouted gills, looking somewhat disturbing.

These two were indeed Liu Wan and Liu Qian.

"Second brother, four big fish took the bait today. They said they were heading to the Nanchi Continent. Can you guess the realms of these people?"

Liu Wan's face still wore a hint of excitement as he chattered nonstop to Liu Qian about the catch of the day.

"The highest among those people is merely at the Intermediate Stage of Great Saint, and the other three are all below the level of a Saint. Moreover, the leader of that little group didn't even blink as he took out forty thousand Purple Mysterious Crystals. I wonder which sect such fools are from."

Liu Qian, however, seemed somewhat distracted, his inner greed ignited by the divine artifact Qinchuan had brandished earlier in the day.

"It's hard to imagine just how many Mysterious Crystals that fat sheep has on him, certainly not to mention a shortage of Heavenly Materials Treasures. Once we seal this deal, we will surely receive a generous reward from the great general."

Truthfully.

Liu Qian and Liu Wan were neither land-dwelling Human Cultivators, but instead humanoid Sea Beasts from the ocean, both serving under General Xi Long of the tempestuous seas.

When the Sea Divine Pavilion fell, the whereabouts of its multitude of Crossing Boats became unknown, with most of them ending up in the possession of Sea Beasts; one of those boats had come into General Xi Long's hands.

These Crossing Boats, originally used by Cultivators to traverse the ocean, held little value to these Sea Beasts.

But General Xi Long came up with a brilliant scheme.

He began by sending people to the coastal city to seek out those who were in urgent need to set sail across the ocean, leading them out into the open sea, only to then ambush and rob them midway.

General Xi Long purposefully set the price of crossing exceptionally high, as a way to filter out Cultivators who lacked sufficient money or treasures.

Those who could afford to spend ten thousand Mysterious Crystals, and were willing to do so for a boat ticket, were their targets.

Over the years, the Cultivators led out to sea by Liu Wan have failed to return, but the path of cultivation is fraught with danger, not to mention the increased risks involved in crossing the ocean to venture to the more perilous Nanchi Continent.

Plus, with Liu Wan and others appearing in different coastal cities, no one has discovered anything amiss with this Liu Wan over the years.

Seeing that Liu Qian was ignoring him, Liu Wan drank a cup of wine and murmured to himself, "One at the Dragon Transformation Realm, two at the Immortal Platform Realm, along with one at the Intermediate Stage of Great Saint. You know, with just this job, we could go it alone. There's no Supreme Saint Expert involved, so surely there's no need for the great general to lift a finger..."

"What? What did you say?"

Liu Qian had been considering how to see Qinchuan again, and how to get his hands on the Divine Artifact, when Liu Wan's words suddenly brought him back to the present, and his eyes shone with excitement as he said, "Say that again?"

"I said, with just this job, the two of us brothers could go it alone, keeping the treasures for ourselves!" Liu Wan repeated.

"No, the previous sentence. What realms did you say the four were at?" Liu Qian's eyes sparkled.

"Two women at the Immortal Platform Realm, one young man at the Dragon Transformation Realm, and an old man at the Intermediate Stage of Great Saint. What about it?" Liu Wan was confused. "With just those four, the two of us brothers working together could easily capture them."

"Are the four people you mentioned looking like this?"

Mana surged at the tip of Liu Qian's finger, and the images of Qinchuan and company coalesced in the void.

"That's right! It's those four." Liu Wan nodded, "By the way, didn't you run into them earlier? Those bastards even mistook me for you," Liu Wan said indignantly.

"Is it really them?" Excitement flashed across Liu Qian's face as he grabbed Liu Wan's collar, "They asked you to go out to sea, planning to head to Nanchi Continent?"

"Yes, what's gotten into you today, acting all startled like that?" Liu Wan pushed him away with a slap.

Realizing that he might be reacting excessively, Liu Qian straightened his clothes and created a soundproof barrier around them, whispering, "You don't know, but those four people have a Divine Artifact on them!"

"Pfft—"

Liu Wan's mouthful of wine sprayed out completely, swearing vehemently.

"Could you think before you bluff, for goodness' sake! Divine Artifact? Are you delirious from being up here too long, or have you drunk yourself into nonsense?"

"This is the Divine Wilderness Continent, where would a Divine Artifact come from!"

Though Liu Wan knew that Qinchuan and his companions were fat sheep, he couldn't believe that they possessed a Divine Artifact.

"How long have I been in this business, brother? Would I not know?" Liu Qian, seeing himself doubted, became anxious, "I'm certain, the kid in Dragon Transformation Realm has a Divine Artifact, and it's the Heaven Devouring Cauldron no less." Saying this, he even took out the fake Heaven Devouring Cauldron shattered by Qinchuan.

As Liu Qian spoke vividly and detailedly, Liu Wan, seeing that he didn't seem drunk, frowned and asked, "Are you speaking the truth?"

"I swear upon the heavenly fate, not a single word is false!" Liu Qian said and invoked the Dao to swear an oath.

Seeing him willing to swear such a significant oath, Liu Wan had no choice but to believe.

"I was just thinking about how to lure the four of them out to sea to seize the Divine Artifact from that kid, and here they are, delivering themselves right to our doorstep!"

Liu Qian and Liu Wan were not land-dwelling human cultivators, but sea creatures in human form, whose power greatly diminished once on shore.

Therefore, although Liu Qian had encountered Qinchuan and the others during the day, and knew Qinchuan carried valuable treasures, despite his eagerness to fight, he was no match for an Intermediate Stage Great Saint on land.

"If these people possess a Divine Artifact, facing an Intermediate Stage Great Saint might prove challenging for us brothers," Liu Wan said with a furrowed brow.

Liu Wan and Liu Qian were both at the Early Stage of Great Saint, their powers reduced to a tenth on land, but their combat abilities soared in the sea.

With the power of the ocean at their disposal, the two of them had no trouble slaying an Intermediate Stage human cultivator.

But now, considering their opponents had a Divine Artifact, they had to be cautious.

After all, the power of a Divine Artifact was immensely overbearing, beyond comparison with ordinary magic artifacts.

"Do we still need to report this to the Great General?"

"Are you crazy? That's a Divine Artifact!" Liu Qian hissed softly, "If the Great General gets the Divine Artifact, we brothers might gain some benefits, but can it compare to a Divine Artifact?

If we brothers obtain a Divine Artifact, and then find a place for Quiet Cultivation for a thousand years, breaking through to the Supreme Saint Realm, wouldn't we be able to sit as equals with the Great General?"

"But that's a Divine Artifact. If an Intermediate Stage Great Saint activates it, are we brothers a match?" Liu Wan was more cautious and said with a frown.

"You dummy, who said we have to fight them head-on? Have you forgotten that thing our ancestor left behind?" Liu Qian's voice grew quieter and quieter.

"Are you speaking of..." Liu Wan's eyes shone with an intense light upon hearing this.

"Yes, how did I not think of that."