Chapter 82: Climbing and Connecting in the North Sea Takes Great Effort; Ao Shun Ruthlessly Casts Aside His Dignity

North Sea Dragon Palace.

The water all around was clear and bright, crystalline like glaze.

Hawksbill turtle shells served as beams, emeralds as tiles, pearls and jade formed pavilions, and the jade terraces gave rise to mist.

Towers and pavilions were nestled amidst the emerald water and misty clouds; there were crystalline, translucent pearls shining brilliantly, glowing with a thousand colors, with pearls and jade filling the branches, and wonderful music chiming up and down.

Before the winding corridors were flowers that never withered for a thousand years, and in various tripods, wisps of smoke coiled without dispersing, bringing long-lasting good fortune. From time to time, spirit shells held pearls in their mouths, and koi fish trailed lanterns.

The interior of the hall was resplendent with gold and jade.

Mist and clouds steamed, and thousands of halos collided, constantly falling toward the ground. The North Sea Dragon King Ao Shun, wearing a high crown and imperial robes, sat upright on a coral cloud bed; above the curtains hung precious pearls, clinking and clanging.

Behind him, there were no fewer than several dozen incense-holding shark maidens and fan-wielding jade attendants.

He wore a smile on his face, appearing to be immersed in the singing and dancing within the hall.

Suddenly, the old dragon's primordial spirit stirred, and he immediately waved his hand, causing the crowd below to retreat entirely, leaving only him alone in the hall.

For a moment, the entire hall became cold and quiet.

A short while later, a copper crane appeared gracefully from the void; it had a red crest and white tail, and its feathers were golden and brilliant, shining with strange textures, possessing a very distinct quality.

It did not look like a living creature, but after landing, it kept spinning around, spreading its wings and stretching its legs, swaying back and forth. The copper crane held an illusory treasure pearl in its beak, lingering and refusing to leave.

This was a rare treasure of the North Sea Dragon Palace; they came in a pair, transmitting information to each other without being subject to the deduction of Heavenly Secrets. The other one was currently in the hands of his thirteenth son, Jiao Mowang.

Ao Shun's heart stirred, and the copper crane slowly landed in his hand. The illusory treasure pearl in its mouth rose slowly, blooming with thousands of rays of light, and immediately submerged into the center of his brow.

The copper crane then hid back into the void.

A vast amount of information surged into his heart like a clear spring, and the ins and outs of the matter were all made clear.

"It was not in vain that I spent an Innate Spiritual Treasure as a tuition fee for apprenticeship. Although my son has yet to achieve anything, he is able to be near the water and get the moon first, learning of such an opportunity. It can be considered as slightly compensating for the flaw that my North Sea Dragon Palace lacks a Great Luo."

Ao Shun stroked his beard with a face full of joy.

After a long while, he hid the joy on his face, his brows slightly furrowed, "It is just that he is still a bit young after all. He even thought about plotting a fortune for his own sisters. How could my North Sea Dragon Palace be worthy of such a fine son-in-law?"

Although he had not attained the Great Luo, he was still a figure who could be called a sovereign among the Taiyi, and his existence was considered long-lived.

Compared to young Dragon Princes like Jiao Mowang, he knew far more secret news.

If one were to truly follow the information sent back by Jiao Mowang, this old dragon concluded that those big figures above had long since divided up how much each could invest.

For a power like the North Sea Dragon Palace, relying on the layer of relationship with the Demon Master, it was acceptable to invest and get a share, but one should not think of anything more.

As for Jiao Mowang's suggestion to directly take this person of great fortune as a fine son-in-law and establish a status,

he dared to guarantee that no matter which Longnu he proposed to marry off, before the matter could be accomplished, that Longnu would inevitably die suddenly.

For the sake of the Demon Master, letting you have a share is already good enough. Why do you still want to take the person in as a son-in-law? And directly take the whole pot home?

What is your status, and what is our status? Among us Great Luo, there are not many who can truly sit at the table to invest; we can only play the edges.

You, an old loach who is not even a Great Luo, are you worthy?

"I must think carefully about what I can send." Ao Shun's gaze was deep as he tapped the table and pondered.

It was not that Ao Shun was unwilling to throw good things at Fang Longye. It was that he had Innate Spiritual Treasures on hand that he could not send out.

Especially now, at a stage where Fang Longye was clearly just starting out, an Innate Spiritual Treasure was still very precious to him. Such a favor and good fruit were things this old dragon could not hold onto.

"Never mind. Since I cannot invest too much in cultivation resources, then I can only be ruthless to myself."

Thinking of what his son had sent back—the evaluation of this person of great fortune by the Demon Master Mansion Master Baize: the aptitude of an Yinglong.

A flash of ruthlessness crossed Ao Shun's eyes; this was a ruthlessness toward himself. His Four Seas Dragon Clan had already missed an Yinglong Niangniang before.

This time, he would rather throw his face and dignity onto the ground to be trampled upon than miss this opportunity to gamble.

He immediately summoned the Turtle Prime Minister and struck the Golden Bell and Iron Drum that connected the Four Seas Dragon Palace.

Before long, the Four Seas Dragon King gathered in the North Sea, and after some conversation, they each dispersed.

……

The sun hung high, and the wispy clouds were faint.

Peaks were clustered together, and valleys and ravines were everywhere.

Above the clouds, a team of three thousand soldiers and generals escorted a carriage surrounded by palace maids, galloping on the clouds.

As they passed, they startled the crowd of demon kings below.

That arrogant and domineering posture made anyone who saw it want to beat this group up.

However, upon seeing the banners with the words "North Sea Dragon Palace" carried by the procession, these demon kings all suppressed their thoughts.

Although this was Beiju Luzhou, the paradise of the Demon Clan, for these middle and lower-level demon immortals, the reputation of the North Sea Dragon Palace still had a lot of deterrent power.

To the Demon Master Mansion, the North Sea Dragon Palace could not be considered a strong dragon and was no different from a loach. But to them, who could not even be considered local bullies and were at most mere toads and insects, the North Sea Dragon Palace was a behemoth.

Tch! And they call themselves the North Sea Dragon Palace~ Such an upstart posture is truly shameful!

Watching the procession suffused with treasure light, the crowd of demon kings cursed in their hearts with red eyes.

Above the clouds, unexpectedly, the carriage driven by exotic beasts and accompanied by palace maids was empty. Instead, two figures were walking alongside the carriage in front.

They were the old turtle from Yuyang Yaofang and a True Immortal Realm Dragon Whale General sent by the North Sea Dragon Palace. "General Jinglong, is the scenery of this Beiju Luzhou quite good?"

"Having grown accustomed to the deep sea, it does have a different flavor," the Dragon Whale General laughed happily.

"That, General Jinglong, before you came, did Dragon King Majesty give you any instructions?" the old turtle asked cautiously.

"I know what you want to say. Now that I am a free man, don't call me General anymore; just call me Fellow Daoist Jinglong!"

The Dragon Whale General laughed with apparent detachment, but in reality, his heart was still ecstatic and unable to contain itself over the opportunity he had received.

He glanced at the hundreds of palace maidens surrounding the carriage behind him; each of them had small coral-like horns on their foreheads, some bright red, some golden yellow, some emerald green, and so on.

These were no ordinary palace maids; they were all princesses from the Four Seas Dragon Palace, and princesses in True Dragon form at that.

And now, these princesses were all in the posture of servants, not even counting as free individuals; they were all gifts that their own Dragon King Majesty wanted to give to someone else.

Thinking of this, he could not help but tremble in his heart—what kind of existence could make the Four Seas Dragon Clan be so friendly?

Especially since this existence himself was only in the True Immortal Realm! And thinking about his own encounter—being arranged by the Dragon King to follow and work for such a person—was this not also a kind of fortune?

The old turtle looked at these princesses, who were pampered in the Longgong in the past, now each with a submissive posture, and could not help but feel shocked by his Majesty's ruthlessness.

These more than one hundred princesses in True Dragon form, just those from the North Sea Dragon Palace alone numbered over fifty, all of them being the daughters of his own King.

He even knew that these princesses were being sent to that Highness not for marriage or to enjoy blessings, but truly to be slaves and maids, with their Life and Death in the hands of another.

To be beaten or killed, all at the other's pleasure.

Originally, from the few words of his own Highness Shisan, he could already anticipate that the Highness they were about to meet was absolutely extraordinary.

Yet he had not expected that this Highness could make his own Dragon King Majesty go to such lengths.

Is this a trivial matter of the lives and dignity of a few daughters? This is a matter of the dignity and face of the entire North Sea Dragon Palace.

For forces with strength, a little loss of face is nothing; it truly does not matter. But for some forces, face is that fig leaf, a part of their strength.

To put it bluntly, a force like the North Sea Dragon Palace relies on face to maneuver and maintain its prestige so as not to be provoked by others.

And the Dragon King acting in this way is throwing the face of the North Sea Dragon Palace—no, the face of the Four Seas Dragon Clan—onto the ground to be trampled upon, and then spitting on it.

He did not even know how his Majesty would deal with the situation of the North Sea Dragon Palace losing all its prestige once this matter was leaked.

After Yinglong Niangniang attained the Dao, the Four Seas Dragon Palace, having lost its status as the orthodox Dragon Clan, really only had its face left.

What kind of big shot is worth the North Sea Dragon Palace acting in this way? Although he himself had indeed forged a good bond with that Highness.

But eating the ruler's salary and being loyal to the ruler's affairs, when all is said and done, he is ultimately a person of the North Sea Dragon Palace.

Not to mention the idea that when the master is humiliated, the subject dies; from the perspective of interests, the interests of the North Sea Dragon Palace are his interests. Only when the North Sea Dragon Palace is prosperous can he have better development.

Gazing at the destination that was gradually coming into view, the old turtle cast aside the worries in his heart and secretly said: "Highness, oh Highness, I hope you are worthy of this sacrifice by my North Sea Dragon Palace."

Cangmang Mountain.

Inside a garden.

Cranes cried gracefully beneath the pines, insects chirped in the grass, the ground was full of floral fragrance, and there was a rustling, clear sound.

Fang Longye sat lazily on a Vine Chair, flipping through a book in his hand.

On it was dense text, recording all kinds of organizational structures, encompassing the names of all the demon masses currently on the entire Cangmang Mountain.

"This Luming is indeed a talent!" Fang Longye glanced at Luming, who was respectfully waiting not far from him, and praised him inwardly.

Now, more than half a year had passed since the renovation of the Cave Abode was completed and he had completely taken over this treasure land he renamed Cangmang Mountain.

With Fang Longye delegating authority, this Luming helped him reorganize and sort through all the demons of the Primordial Spirit Realm.

Changing the previously chaotic situation, with Loose Immortals as commanders and Primordial Spirit demons as soldiers, he set up scouts, combat troops, logistics, spies, and so on, each with their own division of labor.

He managed the entire Huan Shan Chengchi in an orderly fashion, no longer the chaos of when he first moved in.

He even established a mountain patrol mechanism that covered the entire vast ocean.

Although it had just gotten on the right track, it was orderly and had faintly formed a network, covering the various mountains and continents on the surrounding ocean, with unprecedented control.

More importantly, this Luming proposed further improvements to the defense of the Cave Abode.

He suggested that the hundreds of mountains in the ocean outside Cangmang Mountain could all be used as garrisons for the Demon Immortal Realm, constructing another layer of human defense mechanism outside the formation defense.

These were things Fang Longye had naturally thought of when renovating the layout of the Cave Abode.

The reason why he said Luming was a talent was that, faced with these mundane affairs that he himself felt were complicated and annoying, Luming could always enjoy them.

In his view, Luming, who was meticulous, thoughtful, and had amazing talent in management, was he not a talent?

Flower stamens reflected and bloomed, with waves of clear fragrance.

Suddenly, Fang Longye's mind stirred, and he put down the register in his hand.

He said to Qingli beside him: "The honored guests have arrived. Qingli, you take Luming to go and welcome them!"

……

The second chapter today~ Because of family matters, I was angry for half the day. It delayed my writing~ That's all for today.

(End of this chapter)