Chapter 149: The Secret Realm of the Ocean

After Lin Qiu departed with Prime Minister Turtle, the expressions of every city lord in the alliance of the twenty-eight ancient cities were exceedingly grim.

They had never imagined that even after joining forces, they would still prove so utterly helpless before Lin Qiu. The grand boasts they had made when forming the alliance now seemed nothing more than a joke.

Biji had naturally noticed the change as well, but he had no good way to alter the situation.

They had indeed been defeated by Lin Qiu head-on. Faced with such ironclad facts, even if Bicang wished to say something more, there was nothing he could do. At present, he could only place his hopes on the unsealing of the Ocean Royal Clan.

Once the Ocean Royal Clan was freed, perhaps it would be able to suppress Lin Qiu’s arrogant momentum.

At the same time, news of the twenty-eight ancient cities joining forces only to be crushed by Lin Qiu spread throughout the entire Eastern Sea. Everyone was shocked by the strength he had displayed, and the marine races that had previously abandoned the Other Shore King City began returning to its vicinity one after another.

Lin Qiu was not surprised by this development.

Marine creatures who followed whichever side seemed strongest were extremely common in the ocean. If the Other Shore King City wished to develop as quickly as possible, it could not do without them.

That was precisely why Lin Qiu had taken such drastic action this time. He did not want these matters to hinder the development of the Other Shore King City.

Prime Minister Turtle then asked, “Young City Lord, what are your plans next?”

Hearing this, Lin Qiu smiled and said, “I intend to use the Ancient City Stele to improve your cultivation. With your current strength, you are still a little too weak to bear the position of prime minister of the Other Shore King City.”

As Lin Qiu’s cultivation advanced, his ability to utilize the Ancient City Stele had reached an entirely new level.

Not only could he summon the army of the Other Shore King City through the stele, he could also use the power within it to forcibly raise Prime Minister Turtle’s cultivation.

Of course, such an increase came at a price. For a long period of time, Prime Minister Turtle’s cultivation would make no further progress. In essence, he would be drawing upon his potential in advance.

Prime Minister Turtle offered no resistance to Lin Qiu’s proposal. He knew that his age had already placed a limit on him, and that he had little potential left to begin with. Being able to use the Ancient City Stele to improve his cultivation was a good opportunity.

Before long, Lin Qiu brought Prime Minister Turtle to his secluded training chamber, summoned the Ancient City Stele, and activated the power within it to enhance the turtle’s cultivation.

A vast force entered Prime Minister Turtle’s body. Since he was still in the process of digesting that power, Lin Qiu did not remain there. Instead, he went to look for Sun Erniang.

During this period, he had been busy dealing with matters on land and had scarcely spent any time with her. Now that things had more or less come to an end, he decided to take advantage of this rare moment of leisure and properly keep her company.

He soon arrived at Sun Erniang’s residence, where waves of enticing fragrance drifted out.

Wisps of cooking smoke curled above the estate. Sun Erniang appeared to be preparing the meal herself, and Lin Qiu felt fortunate indeed.

He hurried inside and saw Sun Erniang bustling about in the kitchen, while Biji stood outside as though he had nothing to do with him.

Lin Qiu frowned at the sight and said bluntly, “I asked you to come here, not to stand around like some pampered young master.”

At his words, both Sun Erniang and Biji turned their eyes toward him.

Sun Erniang’s gaze was filled with delighted surprise, while Biji’s eyes held a trace of fear.

Clearly, he had heard about everything Lin Qiu had done recently and no longer dared behave as recklessly as before.

Sun Erniang clapped her hands, stepped out of the kitchen, and spoke on Biji’s behalf. “I told him to wait outside. He has never been in a kitchen before and would not be able to help me anyway. I have already prepared several dishes, so why don’t you stay and eat with me today?”

Even after hearing this, Lin Qiu’s expression did not improve.

He had never held much affection for the haughty princess Biji.

Before long, Sun Erniang finished preparing several dishes and carried them to the table in the courtyard. Lin Qiu sat down with her, and the two began to talk.

It had been some time since they had last seen each other. Although they were ostensibly conversing, most of the time Sun Erniang simply listened to Lin Qiu, her face occasionally revealing a trace of heartache.

Though Lin Qiu wielded great influence throughout the ocean and cut an imposing figure, the burdens upon his shoulders were just as heavy.

The Steel Great Wall on land, the affairs of the dragon vein beneath Mount Zhongnan, and the resurgence of the royal clans in the ocean—each of these matters weighed upon Lin Qiu’s heart. He had merely never revealed it to anyone.

He had not even spoken of such things to Prime Minister Turtle. Yet before Sun Erniang, he poured everything out as though emptying a sack of beans, finally finding an outlet for all he had been holding inside.

Sun Erniang knew very well that she could not do much to help Lin Qiu. For that reason, being a suitable listener was the most important thing she could offer him.

Before they realized it, the entire afternoon had passed.

Prime Minister Turtle also awoke from his transformation of power. He found Lin Qiu and told him something of great importance.

After hearing him out, Lin Qiu rose and left for the city lord’s residence. There, he took out a map of the surrounding ocean and asked Prime Minister Turtle, “Where is that secret realm? Mark the location for me.”

What Prime Minister Turtle had just told him concerned an oceanic secret realm.

Although most of the evolutionary energy released during the royal clan’s unsealing last time had been devoured by Lin Qiu, a small portion had fallen into the waters of the Eastern Sea. As a result, it had affected the opening times of several secret realms.

Not long ago, Prime Minister Turtle had sensed that an oceanic secret realm was about to open. This was no ordinary minor secret realm. Within it was something capable of purifying bloodlines.

Anything that could purify a bloodline would provoke conflict wherever it appeared. What was more, Lin Qiu was in urgent need of such a treasure.

After all, the blood flowing through his body was that of the Candle Dragon. If he could evolve his Candle Dragon bloodline as soon as possible, his combat power would increase tremendously. That was why he attached such importance to this news.

If it had been merely an ordinary oceanic secret realm, Lin Qiu would have seen no need to act.

After all, he had previously devoured the treasury of the Black Tortoise Clan and possessed no shortage of treasures. He simply had not taken many of them out for use.