"Hm, the human civilians here are eagerly waiting, hoping that the Da Yi heavenly soldiers will arrive soon and rescue them from their dire suffering," Gongsun Da Niang said solemnly. "When next we meet, I hope to offer a sword dance in your presence."
Her bright eyes looked toward Yi Tianxing. Suddenly, she raised her slender hand and removed the veil from her face.
Yi Tianxing's gaze instinctively fixed upon her, not blinking for fear of missing even a moment.
As the veil slowly fell, the surrounding aquatic creatures—jellyfish, fish—abruptly froze in place, as if petrified by an invisible force. They dropped stiffly to the seafloor.
Beautiful!
An unparalleled, breathtaking beauty.
If Cai Yan and Yao Yue were already considered devastatingly beautiful, Gongsun Da Niang's allure was on another level—heart-stopping. Merely seeing her face stirred involuntary admiration, as though crafted by heaven itself. Her beauty could overshadow the heavens and dim the brilliance of sun and moon.
She was simply too beautiful. So beautiful it was impossible not to be moved.
"You are heaven's masterpiece. No wonder you wear a veil. Without it, wherever you go would cause unimaginable upheaval."
Even Yi Tianxing found himself momentarily dazed by her indescribable beauty. Fortunately, he was no stranger to stunning women, his willpower long tempered. In just a moment, he recovered his clarity.
But if even he was briefly affected, it was clear how devastating her appearance would be to ordinary cultivators. The veil, then, was a means to avoid endless trouble.
"A woman adorns herself for the one who cherishes her. Otherwise, what use is beauty?"Gongsun Da Niang chuckled softly, then replaced the veil.
Turning, she walked toward the teleportation gate.
She came like a breeze and left with graceful detachment!
"The Skyhawk Dynasty… must perish!!"
A firm light flashed in Yi Tianxing's eyes.
He stepped into the teleportation gate.
After another round of disorienting spinning, he emerged from the undersea world and returned to the imperial palace, inside the quiet chamber where he had departed.
"I'm back. The power of the Dragon Clan truly defies comprehension. Just a single invitation carried such overwhelming force—truly awe-inspiring. Still, it's time to take stock of our gains from this trip."
Even as he harbored deep wariness toward the Dragon Clan, Yi Tianxing couldn't help feeling anticipation.
After all, Green Emperor and the others had robbed a massive number of elite cultivators from various races, including tens of thousands of Dragon Clan soldiers. The four black storage pouches must hold a staggering trove of treasures. He had been too preoccupied earlier to check—but now, his curiosity was piqued.
Without hesitation, he quickly retrieved the four black pouches.
Each was a massive spatial container—no exaggeration to call them large-scale storage bags. Their internal space rivaled a football stadium in size, capable of holding mountains of treasure. His meditation chamber couldn't possibly accommodate their contents.
With a thought, he entered the Hongmeng Heavenly Emperor Pagoda.
He picked up one black pouch and overturned it.
Clatter!!
A crisp sound rang out as brilliant light erupted. A torrent of rare treasures poured out like a tide, piling into a mountain in an instant.
"That old saying is true—'Murder and arson bring a golden belt.' What Green Emperor and the others pulled off… this haul is absolutely enormous. Astounding, truly astounding."
Yi Tianxing clicked his tongue in admiration. This was just one of the four pouches. If he dumped out the rest, the scale would be even more jaw-dropping.
Without hesitation, he emptied the remaining three pouches.
Whoosh!!
Three more giant treasure mounds appeared.
He then waved his hand, and a square-shaped appraisal platform materialized before him.
"Now it's time for the Appraisal Platform to shine."
With so many treasures stacked like mountains, they had to be meticulously sorted. Some items might be extremely rare or powerful, hidden among the loot. Many cultivators they had robbed were elite figures, likely carrying unique items—some even from the auction. Treasures they never revealed in public.
Now, all of them had fallen into Yi Tianxing's hands.
So it was very possible that top-tier treasures lay hidden among them.
Whoosh!!
He placed a standard armor piece onto the appraisal platform. On close inspection, it resembled the armor worn by the shrimp soldiers.
As expected, two layers of treasure-light radiated from the platform.
Shrimp Soldier Armor: Standard Dragon Palace battle armor. Grade: Profound Rank, Tier 1. Made from the shell of a transformed shrimp, fused with Sea Profound Stone and refined with various materials. The armor embryo forms when the shrimp soldier begins its humanoid transformation and is constantly refined with true essence and mana. Evolves and strengthens as the soldier grows. Offers strong defense, able to withstand Yellow Rank and Fate Aperture divine arts. Amplifies the wearer's bloodline, increasing combat power by approximately 30%.
The appraisal platform projected the description.
It was a Profound Rank artifact. Not top-tier, but certainly not weak either—useful against Fate Aperture or Fate Map cultivators.
"So it's a personally refined armor with special restrictions—tailored for shrimp soldiers and their bloodline. It's valuable, but of limited use for others. This can be sold or broken down for materials. But the quantity… that's the issue. We can't let this stuff hit the market casually."
The Shrimp Soldier Armor was clearly unique to the Dragon Palace military. A few pieces wouldn't raise alarm, but hundreds or thousands? That would definitely attract attention from the Dragon Clan. And such armors weren't meant to be handed over to outsiders.
If the Dragon Palace of the Vast Sea learned about this…
It would be a direct link to Green Emperor's group.
And now was not the time to fall out with the Dragon Clan.
"If only I could meet those wandering merchants again. These armors would be perfect for them."
Yi Tianxing began to miss those wandering traders, who bought all kinds of treasure regardless of origin. They had the resources and connections to resell even sensitive items discreetly.
He placed another armor piece on the platform.
Unlike the last, this one radiated a heavy, commanding aura and a dark metallic gleam.
The platform flashed again—two layers of treasure-light.
Crab General Armor: Standard Dragon Palace battle armor. Grade: Profound Rank, Tier 9. Crafted from the crab's own shell fused with Sea Profound Stone. Begins forming during humanoid transformation and is refined daily with true essence. Evolves as the crab grows. Offers excellent defense, able to withstand Fate Map divine arts. Amplifies the crab bloodline, boosting combat power by roughly 80%.
This was Crab General Armor.
Same Profound Rank, but far superior in quality. A heavy armor, unlike the shrimp's light version. Much stronger in both defense and bloodline enhancement.
It revealed the stark contrast in status and power between shrimp soldiers and crab generals.
Fortunately, there were only about a hundred of these.
Still, they were just as problematic to distribute.
"Set them aside for now."
With a wave of his hand, Yi Tianxing swiftly sorted the shrimp and crab armor sets, along with all other standard Dragon Palace weapons and gear.
There were a lot.
But they made up only a small portion of the total loot.
"Separate the Eternal Coins next."
With another wave, a huge pile of Eternal Coins was extracted.
This, too, was no small sum.
Then he separated other common currencies of the aquatic races—Spirit Shells, Spirit Pearls, and so on.
These didn't concern him. Like spirit stones, they could be refined to enhance cultivation. Consumables, really. Not worth overthinking.
Next, he placed another item onto the appraisal platform.
This time, it was a scale.
A large one—about the size of an adult's head—etched with mysterious blue patterns and radiating a powerful pressure.
Nine-Headed Serpent Scale: Shed during a millennial molt, each head drops one scale. Contains essence of the serpent and powerful laws. This is an Ice Serpent Scale—extremely tough, rich in Dao Rhyme and divine power. Can be refined into armors, shields, or talismans. Has immense defensive strength and strong affinity with ice attributes. Highly rare and valuable. Greatly enhances serpent bloodlines, especially in evolving ice-attribute traits.
A description appeared.
Without a doubt, this scale was extraordinarily precious.
The Nine-Headed Serpent was one of the most terrifying aquatic races—symbols of death and despair. As long as even one head remained, all others could regenerate. Their vitality was monstrous.