CHAPTER 533: CHAPTER 343: THE SECRET IN THE VOLCANIC ASH

The Sea Demon Clan is called a civilization not only because this species possesses intelligence, but also because they’ve developed a cultural and ethical system through historical accumulation.

It’s precisely due to this characteristic of being a "civilization" that allows civilizations to communicate and understand each other, avoiding friction and conflict.

Of course, the premise is that there is no conflict of interest between the two civilizations.

Humans and the Sea Demon Clan belong to different worlds, and there’s no irreconcilable conflict of interest between them.

Therefore, in terms of survival space, humans and the Sea Demon Clan will not form a hostile relationship.

As long as it’s not a hostile relationship, communication is possible.

Moreover, with the appearance of Liu Haiyang and the other five, helping the Sea Demon Clan kill the mad sea beasts, they have gained some recognition from the Sea Demons.

This is a good start.

On the premise of no conflict of interest, when one civilization receives help from another, it will feel grateful, even if only a little, it’s enough.

Thus, Liu Haiyang and the others were treated with courtesy by the Sea Demon Clan, invited as guests to the Sea Demon Temple.

With this layer of relationship, the attitude of the Sea Demon Clan relaxed significantly.

High Priestess Sona ordered the guards to escort Friggs down to be imprisoned, then invited Lu Heng and his group to the guest room.

Having the opportunity to sit down, they could finally discuss serious matters.

"High Priestess, to the Sea Demon Clan, killing a few Black Iron Dwarves is easy, but purifying the seawater is difficult. Wouldn’t it be better if through negotiation, we could make the Black Iron Dwarves stop dumping volcanic ash into the Tidal Sea?"

High Priestess Sona had someone offer a drink in a shell cup, sighed, and said, "If it were so simple, things wouldn’t have developed to this point."

Lu Heng pondered and asked, "Do you know why the Black Iron Dwarves are dumping volcanic ash into the sea? The Black Iron Dwarves are far away in the Molten Crown’s Black Iron Kingdom, traveling thousands of miles to dump volcanic ash into the Tidal Sea, which seems a thankless task, very unreasonable."

A Sea Demon elder beside them slammed his fist on the table, snorted, and said, "Those Black Iron Dwarves are deliberately polluting the seawater of our territory. They must be controlled by Abyss Demons."

This theory seems to make some sense.

If the Black Iron Dwarves were controlled by the Abyss, dumping pollutants into the Tidal Sea, things might make sense.

But is it really that simple?

Moreover, Captain Friggs didn’t seem to be controlled by the Abyss.

Lu Heng pursued the question, "Is there any evidence to prove that the Black Iron Dwarves are controlled by the Abyss?"

Faced with this question, the Sea Demons present fell silent.

Because they hadn’t found any evidence that the Black Iron Dwarves were controlled by the Abyss, it was only speculation.

Lu Heng carefully recalled in his mind, trying to find related information, but in his previous life, he wasn’t aware of the real reason for the animosity between the Sea Demon Clan and the Black Iron Dwarves.

He only knew that the Sea Demon Clan and the Black Iron Dwarves were indeed in opposition, and this animosity would persist.

Though the two races were adversaries, there hadn’t been any large-scale conflicts.

The reason is also simple: one lives on land, the other dwells in the deep sea.

Their survival spaces do not overlap, so their hostility is limited to localized conflicts on the sea surface.

The most severe consequence is the Sea Demon Clan blocking the seas, preventing the Black Iron Dwarves from sailing.

Thus, in the previous life, their relationship would continue in this indifferent animosity, without further developments.

Thinking about the main quest of this summoning, Lu Heng felt things weren’t as simple as they appeared.

The challenge task of this summoning required helping the Black Iron Dwarves and the Sea Demon Clan reconcile, and according to the summoning pattern, the first batch of superpower users that were summoned last time likely received the same task.

However, the superpower users summoned last time didn’t successfully help the two races reconcile, leading to the continued animosity between them.

To change this outcome, the key is to find out the root of the conflict between the two sides.

The root of this conflict is why the Black Iron Dwarves are dumping volcanic ash into the Tidal Sea.

Lu Heng stood up and said, "High Priestess, I want to meet Friggs and see if I can find out from him why the Black Iron Dwarves are dumping volcanic ash into the sea. Finding the reason is the only way to find a solution."

Elder Onatu of the Sea Demon Clan snorted coldly, "Those Black Iron Dwarves are just a wild species, why would they need a reason to dump garbage?"

High Priestess Sona raised her hand to stop Elder Onatu, thought for a moment, and agreed, "Alright, I’ll choose to trust you this time. I hope you can find out why the Black Iron Dwarves are doing this."

...

Afterwards, Liu Haiyang and the others were led to the guest area of the Sea Demon territory to rest.

Lu Heng then entered the water prison to see Friggs.

Though it’s called a water prison, the cell is actually a rare air-filled space in the deep sea.

Since the prisoner is a Black Iron Dwarf, without air in the cell, he would have drowned long ago.

Friggs was now imprisoned in the water prison, with his lower body submerged in seawater, and his hands and feet shackled, making a clanging noise with every movement.

Lu Heng walked up to the cell, leaned against the iron door, and sat down, just able to level with Friggs.

Upon seeing Lu Heng, Friggs snorted angrily, "Go tell those damn Sea Demons to let me out, otherwise just kill me!"

Lu Heng scrutinized him for a moment, then smiled and said, "Black Iron Dwarves truly are a short-tempered lot."

Friggs frowned and glared at Lu Heng, snorted, and said, "How many Black Iron Dwarves have you met? What makes you say we’re short-tempered?"