Tomb Raiding

The Zhenyuan sailed through the Inverted Sea, an eerily still area with the deep seabed above and churning waves below.

"Boss, look!" Mud Monkey squatted by the side of the boat, pointing to a strange fish swimming below the water.

The fish was covered in a layer of pale white bony armor, and its head had a face that looked very much like a human face, which was staring at the deck from across the water.

Luo Meng slapped him across the face. "What are you looking at? Cast the net! This bone looks tough. Let my sister see if she can use it."

The two of them worked together to lift a giant net mixed with iron wire and then hurled it onto the sea.

Before the human-faced bony fish could even open its mouth, it was tightly bound by the iron net and dragged onto the deck, still writhing wildly, its tail slapping against the wooden planks with a loud cracking sound.

The mud monkey pulled out a short knife and stabbed the fish in the head.

With a clang, sparks flew everywhere.

"Damn it, this fish bone is harder than iron." The mud monkey's tiger mouth was throbbing with pain. He changed his angle, poured his blood and qi into the blade, and carefully pried open the bone armor. Inside, a walnut-sized Yin Soul Crystal that emitted a cold, faint light rolled out.

"We're rich!" The mud monkey's eyes gleamed with greed. "This one is at least ten times better quality than the ones you find elsewhere!"

The bottom hatch opened, and Chen Yuanzhi walked out, holding the Poison Sutra in his hand.

He strode over to a pile of freshly caught seafood, took out a small bone knife, and carefully scraped a few drops of viscous purple liquid from between the teeth of a highly venomous sea snake.

"Old Luo, leave me the gallbladder of the human-faced fish." Chen Yuanzhi didn't even look up. "This seems to be an ancient, exotic species, mentioned in the Poison Classic. Its gallbladder, combined with other poisons, can be used to brew a pot of potent medicine that even experts at the Inner Strength Realm would fear."

Luo Meng shuddered and immediately followed Chen Yuanzhi's instructions to process the seafood at hand.

The blessed land in Xu Hao's mind kept emitting satisfied tremors.

As the Zhenyuan cruised on the sea, its dark red fleshy underside never stopped, devouring any fragments of ancient artifacts with spiritual energy or useless sea beast carcasses on the deck.

This isn't tomb raiding; it's more like visiting a charity temple.

"Boss, the fog is getting thicker ahead."

Luo Meng shouted from the deck.

A glint of light flashed in Xu Hao's eyes.

"Sail on," he said hoarsely. "Whoever gets in the way, this ship will get extra food."

The black ship accelerated again, its tattered flag painted with faceless human faces fluttering wildly in the upside-down sea breeze, heading towards the deepest part of the Sea King's Tomb.

Occasionally, one could see the wrecked ships and broken logs of other forces around. Most of the martial artists who usually roamed the seas had now become food for the underwater aliens. Only the Zhenyuan was getting more and more ferocious as it ate, and becoming more and more stable as it sailed.

The Zhenyuan glided silently through the mist of the Upside-Down Sea.

The deathly silence ahead was shattered by a burst of intense clashing of weapons.

Xu Hao raised his hand to signal Luo Meng to slow down. The illusionary mist properties around the Zhenyuan were fully activated, making it indistinguishable from the sea fog, and it quietly approached.

The fog suddenly cleared, revealing a bright and clear view.

Above, on the deep seabed cliffs, hangs a massive palace upside down.

The entire palace was pieced together from the pale bones of countless giant beasts, with a dazzling golden array pattern flowing around its perimeter.

The oppressive aura emanating from the array patterns was so powerful that it made people tremble even from a great distance, exuding a formidable aura that suppressed all things.

The deck beneath Xu Hao's feet immediately became restless.

The Zhenyuan made a teeth-grinding creaking sound, and several dark red fleshy tendrils poked their heads out from the gaps, twisting wildly toward the palace, revealing an impatient greed.

"Keep it down." Xu Hao stomped his toe on the deck. "It's not time for dinner yet."

Luo Meng lay prone on the gunwale, staring ahead with his bull-like eyes. "Boss, there are people up ahead, quite a few!"

Xu Hao looked up. On the churning sea directly below the Palace of Bones, there were three perfectly intact flagships.

Blue background with gold anchor, white background with gold coins, red background with animal teeth.

Moreover, the flagship was surrounded by several elite warships flying the Twelve Bandits' flags.

Mud Monkey rubbed his eyes, his mask askew. "What the hell! We've fought our way here, and all the ships we've encountered have been wrecked and broken. How did these bastards manage to get such a complete set?"

Chen Yuanzhi, sleeves rolled up, coldly observed the scene unfolding in the distance. "Boss, we've all been made a fool of."

Xu Hao's gaze, hidden behind his mask, swept over the three large flags. "Do you understand now?"

"The spatial turbulence when we entered the bronze gate was clearly a trap set by these three alliance leaders working together," Chen Yuanzhi sneered. "They planned this all along, using their subordinates as cannon fodder to scatter the Twelve Bandits and all sorts of miscellaneous fodder. Those who are standing here safely now are all their core confidants whom they brought in themselves."

Luo Meng gritted his teeth as he listened. "These gang leaders are truly ruthless. We thought they were involved too, but it turns out they'd already taken a shortcut to divide the loot!"

"That's called tactical," Xu Hao said calmly. "Who would want to share the spoils from the Sea King's Tomb with just one more person? If it weren't for our ship's thick hull and big appetite, we'd be floating on the sea like scraps of wood right now."

The mud monkey spat indignantly. "Pah! Luo Tianheng was just pretending to be a saint outside, but he's actually a heartless old bastard who eats people alive!"

Outside the Bone Palace, the forces of the Three Alliances were staring intently at the flowing golden array patterns on the outer layer.

The Bone Palace hung upside down on the deep seabed cliffs overhead, its outer perimeter swirling with golden array patterns, radiating a powerful aura.

Luo Tianheng stood beneath the blue flag with a golden anchor, his brow furrowed as he looked at the array patterns that had remained unbroken for so long. "Gentlemen," he said, "this array pattern is an ancient relic; it's impossible for any one family to break it alone. The Martial Ancestor's legacy is right before us; if we hold back, no one can enter. Why don't we join forces and blast this shell open?"

Ao Zheng spat, "Hey Luo, stop pretending to be all high and mighty. My men died the most when we were crossing the turbulent waters. Now that we're breaking the formation, your Zhenhai Alliance should be at the forefront!"

Ye Piaoling tapped her palm with her folding fan and smiled amicably, "Alliance Leader Ao's words make sense, but with the inheritance at hand, arguing about these things would damage our harmony. My Free and Unfettered Alliance is willing to do everything in its power."

"Attack!" Luo Tianheng stopped wasting words and unleashed the powerful internal energy of his Zhenhai Fubo Gong, transforming it into a tangible palm shadow that slammed fiercely into the golden array patterns.

Ao Zheng snorted coldly, activated the Bloodthirsty Dragon Transformation Technique, and a violent crimson aura followed closely behind.

With the combined efforts of Ye Piaoling and the Twelve Bandits, various kinds of blood and internal energy rained down on the array patterns.

The deafening roar was deafening, the golden array patterns twisted violently, the light flickered and swayed precariously.

Less than a hundred feet away from them, at the edge of the abyss, a huge black reef lay silently in the shadows.

Inside the black reef, Mud Monkey clung to the ship's gunwale, peering out through gaps in the camouflage, smacking his lips. "Brother Luo, look at those old monsters, their faces are all red. This shell is really tough."

Luo Meng lowered his voice and cursed, "Keep your voice down! The boss just finished disguising the ship. If your shout attracts attention, I'll fill the sea with you first."

Xu Hao stood on the deck with his hands behind his back, thinking to himself that this Sea King's Tomb was really a good place. The Zhenyuan had been eating and drinking like crazy ever since it came in, and had even used the Thousand Faces Illusion Armor again, disguising the ship as a reef without any concern.

The Zhenyuan ship beneath our feet was creaking very faintly, and several dark red fleshy whiskers were pacing anxiously beneath the deck, clearly craving the ancient-looking white bone palace not far away.

"What's the rush?" Xu Hao stomped his toe on the restless wooden planks, stabilizing the ravenous demon ship beneath him. "Where else can you find someone willing to be our laborer, banging on the door?