An Understated Dominance

No one had expected that, under the Fish King's command, the deep-sea piranhas would possess such devastating power. With just a single charge, they could snap a ten-meter-long escort ship in half --- truly beyond imagination. This was no longer a mere fish swarm; it was more like a horde of fish demons. Even an ordinary deep-sea piranha posed a significant threat --- let alone these creatures that had seemingly gained sentience. Not only were they larger and fiercer, but their vitality was also terrifyingly strong. Despite the fleet being armed with various guns and cannons, they still found themselves flustered in the face of thousands of these monstrous piranhas. Li Wenxing’s black battle robe, embroidered with python patterns, fluttered in the sea breeze, revealing a jewel-encrusted sword at his waist. He stared at the escort ship that had been split in two --- the firelight on its deck flickered amidst the crashing waves before being swallowed by the ink-black se...

Dustin landed lightly back on the shattered deck, the golden glow on his longsword gradually fading. Across the sea’s surface, dark green blood floated in thick patches, slowly dispersing in the rain. Far in the distance, the typhoon had vanished without warning. A gap opened in the clouds, allowing sunlight to break through at last, casting warm rays onto the ravaged Wavebreaker . Margaret steadied herself against the swaying rail, gazing out at the now-calm sea, a long sigh of relief escaping her lips. That octopus demon just now had the power of an Ultimate Grandmaster --- its enormous body and terrifying regenerative abilities made it nearly invincible. Even most Ultimate Grandmasters wouldn’t stand a chance against such a monster. Thankfully, they had Dustin. If he hadn't been there, who knows how many lives would have been lost? At last, the sea had calmed, and the storm was receding. The Wavebreaker floated gently atop the waves. The deck was in ruins, littered ...

"It's the octopus demon!" The old fisherman collapsed at the cabin door, teeth chattering. "Legend says there's a sea monster in the Blackwater Trench… it feeds on the living!" As he spoke, more tentacles surged in from all directions. Some wrapped around the mast and slowly broke it in half; others slithered into the cabin, smashing the supplies into pieces. A young soldier was snatched into the air by a tentacle. He screamed the names of his comrades in terror, but the tentacle flung him into a distant towering wave, where he was instantly swallowed. The ship tilted violently. Many lost their balance and tumbled across the deck. A military medic clutched his medical kit, trying to treat the wounded. But a tentacle suddenly lashed out, knocking him to the ground. The kit hit the floor, spilling its contents, which were quickly soaked by seawater. A suction cup latched onto the medic’s leg. He howled in pain, watching helplessly as he was dragged toward the ...

Margaret stood before a mountain of nautical charts, her fingertips gliding gently over the yellowed parchment. The cinnabar-red routes drawn on them looked like congealed trails of blood, glowing eerily under the flickering candlelight. When Dustin pushed open the door, he saw her tucking a thick stack of leather-bound ledgers into a rosewood chest. Glimpses of titles like Fresh Water Reserves and Ration Allocations showed her meticulous planning for the upcoming voyage. “Any news from the fishermen?” Dustin asked. Margaret looked up, her eyes reflecting the deepening twilight outside the window. “Su Lan just got back from the harbor. Found an old fisherman with the surname Qin.” “He claims he saw a mirage near the Blackwater Trench three years ago. Said there were floating pavilions and jade towers among the clouds, and at the front stood a stone tablet carved with the word ‘Penglai.’” She paused, tapping her fingers on the desk. “But the old man said the vision lasted ...

When Li Weimin’s decree was issued, reactions across the factions varied. At that moment, Li Wenxing was in his study, weighing the pros and cons of the recent trip to Southern Frontier. Although he hadn’t stood out much, compared to Li Guanglong and Li Juntang, he was still the more capable one. But this minor advantage clearly wasn’t enough to change the overall outcome. Just then, Qian Jin rushed in and reported, “Your Highness! A message from the palace --- His Majesty’s condition has worsened, and he has only a short time left. He has issued a special decree: any royal family member who can journey to Penglai Island and retrieve the elixir will become the future crown prince!” “Future crown prince?” Hearing this, Li Wenxing’s spirits lifted immediately. But soon after, he frowned. He had, of course, heard of Penglai Island --- but only in legends. Whether it truly existed in the East Sea, and whether it held any elixir that could extend life, remained unknown. ...

Five days passed in a flash. The plague in the Southern Frontier had finally subsided, though the situations across the cities varied greatly. The first city hit, Pucheng, surprisingly suffered the least. The people there had been properly taken care of. Next was Wugang, which, due to its proximity to Pucheng and the timely intervention of Margaret, was also able to eradicate the mutated plague after paying a certain price. In stark contrast, Lincheng and Liyang --- though they also managed to eliminate the plague --- paid a devastating price. Tens of thousands of civilians were burned to death, their corpses piled like mountains. Despite Li Guanglong and Li Juntang’s efforts to suppress the truth under the guise of preventing further spread of infection, the news still leaked out. For a time, the court and the public were abuzz with debate. Some condemned Li Guanglong and Li Juntang for their brutality, while others believed that extraordinary times called for extraord...

At this moment, the skies above Lincheng were shrouded in thick black smoke. The once-bustling streets were now deathly silent, the air thick with the choking stench of scorched flesh, blood, and decay --- an odor that turned the stomach. In the mass graveyard in the city’s southwest, raging flames still crackled, devouring the last traces of life. Charred corpses twisted grotesquely in the fire, and occasionally, half-burned limbs tumbled out from the pyre, exposing pale, white bones. Li Guanglong stood atop a slope, clad in a protective suit, gazing emotionlessly over the hellish scene below. There wasn’t the slightest ripple in his sharply defined face, as if what burned beneath him weren’t thousands of human lives, but a pile of worthless dried grass. The dark red bloodstains on his protective suit had long dried, and now glimmered eerily under the sun. “Your Highness, we’ve just found another thirty-seven plague-infected commoners in the western district. They’ve all b...