CHAPTER 765: CHAPTER 473: LAND OF FRAGMENTS_2

The space here was extremely unstable, the flow of seawater completely irregular, filled everywhere with undercurrents and whirlpools, its destination unknown, the sea surface undulating like mountains, roaring like the sound of waves—hidden beneath, a series of enormous rifts led to nothingness.

Ji Xinghuo took out the map given to him by Cang Ya.

On it, this area of hundreds of billions of square kilometers at the edge of the map was marked as "Silent Sea."

This was a land of life’s desolation.

Even the Sea Abyss Hunters rarely ventured into the Silent Sea.

It was said that if one could cross the Silent Sea, they would reach another part of the Sea Abyss, and moving forward would bring them to a realm adjacent to the True Dragon Territory, corresponding to the spiral arm adjacent to the Orion Arm in the Milky Way.

"One jump, and I could reach the fragment’s location," Ji Xinghuo was very cautious; naturally, he wouldn’t act rashly.

He had a plan in mind.

Jiu You emerged from his left eye and attached to his body, entering the Dark Avatar state, instantly pouring thirty thousand points of Star Power to create a Shadow Clone. The King of Annihilation immediately absorbed Dark Energy to recover Star Power, continuing to create a second Shadow Clone.

In less than half an hour, Ji Xinghuo had created eight Shadow Clones.

But Ji Xinghuo didn’t deploy all the Shadow Clones at once. He waited until his Star Power had recovered to its peak, then one of the Shadow Clones lit up.

Star Realm Jump!

A Fourth Level Star Realm Jump would consume about two thousand points of Star Power; the Star Power consumed by a Shadow Clone could not be recovered.

However, the remaining Star Power was sufficient for action.

Ji Xinghuo stayed in place, receiving information through the senses of the Shadow Clone.

"I’ve arrived."

"It should be here."

The sea area where the Shadow Clone arrived looked no different from other parts of the Silent Sea, with endless dark clouds shrouding the sky, somber and oppressive, and no islands in sight.

"Could it be at the bottom of the sea?"

Electromagnetic sensing swept a 200-kilometer radius from the sky to the seabed, but detected nothing unusual.

And found no fragments of the Wanxiang Star Pupil.

However, in the sea, there were huge Void Rifts everywhere, constantly twisting and changing; electromagnetic sensing couldn’t penetrate the void to explore what was inside the rifts.

Ji Xinghuo immediately thought of the Cloud Sea Dragon’s Dragon Nest and suddenly guessed that there might be a Secret Realm hidden within these Void Rifts!

He felt slightly uneasy.

If the fragments of the Wanxiang Star Pupil were in the Secret Realm, then there was a very high chance that someone had taken them there.

"First, find the entrance to the Secret Realm."

Ji Xinghuo had the Shadow Clone wait mid-air, while he and the other seven Shadow Clones flew over.

The Star Realm Jump of the Shadow Clone was calculated separately, not affecting the jumping distance of the main body, but Ji Xinghuo didn’t want to waste; after all, he could fly there quickly at the speed of Doomsday, still accompanied by the remaining Shadow Clones.

Arriving at the target sea area.

In Ji Xinghuo’s view, the interface’s arrow pointed to the seabed—he himself didn’t go underwater but had a Shadow Clone go ahead to scout.

Moments later.

The Shadow Clone dived more than ten thousand meters deep to the seabed, stopping before a Void Rift.

This Void Rift, like the rifts around it, was like a great canyon extending across the sea, swallowing seawater while simultaneously letting a large volume of it flow out—if it weren’t for the arrow pointing the way, it would be inconspicuous.

"This is the place."

Above the sea, Ji Xinghuo and the seven Shadow Clones kept a distance of over a hundred kilometers away, maintaining invisibility.

The Shadow Clone then plunged into the Void Rift.

In the darkness, the Shadow Clone felt forces of pulling and compression. If it were a normal human body, it would have turned to dust in an instant; even a Legendary Mutant would struggle to endure, but it had no effect on Ji Xinghuo’s Shadow Clone.

Suddenly, there was clarity ahead.

Through the Shadow Clone, Ji Xinghuo found himself above another sea surface—yet this was a beautiful landscape of blue sea and sky.

Electromagnetic induction spread out immediately.

"Indeed, it’s a Secret Realm!"

Ji Xinghuo exclaimed in amazement; however, the space of this Secret Realm was very extensive, about 180 kilometers in diameter, almost out of the reach of electromagnetic induction. The realm was almost entirely made up of sea, with dozens of islands.

These islands resembled a string of pearl necklaces scattered across the sea, with the largest island near the center of the secret realm.

The island was thickly vegetated and housed many buildings.

The shadow clone encountered a large number of mutants from various races, all active around a black palace on the island.

"Who goes there?"

Before he could take a detailed look, someone nearby shouted loudly.

Around the sea where the shadow clone appeared, a circular platform over six hundred meters in diameter was constructed, one side open to allow the sea water to flow in. The platform was heavily guarded by a mixed group of races including Merfolk, Shell Clan, Deserted People, and pseudo-Dragons, all common mutant races of the Bibo Dragon Domain.

Their overall strength was poor, with the team leader being only at Legendary level.

The weapon equipment was also battered and worn-out.

In Ji Xinghuo’s view, they were merely a rabble of shrimp soldiers and crab generals, and despite their loud shouting, none dared to step forward.

Clap!

The shadow clone ignored these guards, soared into the sky, and disappeared into the horizon in an instant.

Its destination was the large island within the secret realm. Electromagnetic induction had detected a target, the only entity in the realm capable of posing a threat. The fragment of Wanxiang Star Pupil was on that entity, and it was essential to scout the area.

Outside the secret realm, seven other shadow clones also returned, getting ready to enter the void rift.

The shadow clone raced across the sea surface, as swift as lightning.

The distance from the entrance of the secret realm to the island wasn’t far, and it quickly reached the island. The architectural style and landscape were similar to those of the islands in the Bibo Dragon Domain, covering an area of about 200 square kilometers.

A black palace stood in the middle of the island.

The entire palace was built of huge stones, strangely shaped, with the surface carved with obscure and eerie reliefs, completely defying conventional aesthetics, causing an intense sense of repulsion.

There was only one creature in the palace.

Approaching, the shadow clone was able to make a preliminary judgment from the shape and intensity of the magnetic field.

It was a giant, about seven meters tall, probably at Sixth Rank Third Dan, but not reaching the Sixth Rank Peak. However, the giant emitted a strange oscillation as if shrouded in fog, making it difficult to see the whole picture.

"In any case, it’s just a shadow clone, no matter if it’s lost."

The shadow clone accelerated once more, charging toward the palace.

Boom!

Before it arrived, a massive bolt of lightning struck the black palace, thunder reverberating across the sky with alarming force. A dense, fog-like shadow emerged outside the palace; the lightning struck it, rendering it utterly ineffective as if it had submerged into the sea.

"What is this thing?" the shadow clone sensed that something was amiss.

At that moment, an invisible beam shot out from the palace, hitting the shadow clone instantly, causing it to plummet toward the ground, losing speed.

The shadow clone’s body stiffened, unable to move.

Its mind was still functioning normally, and the senses were intact, but it had lost connection with its own body and couldn’t use its abilities either.

With a thud.

The shadow clone fell to the ground like a stone, creating a trench hundreds of meters long due to the inertia of the fall, yet it was unharmed; suddenly, both its body and abilities recovered.

It leaped up from the pit, discovering that it had fallen only a few hundred meters away from the palace.

The shadow clone did not continue the assault.

Boom!

The grand doors of the black palace opened, and a tall figure walked out, causing the shadow clone to wear a look of shock on its face upon seeing it clear.

As the electromagnetic induction had scanned, the entity was a giant.

This giant, over seven meters tall, possessed an incredibly robust figure, its skin bluish-gray and oily, thick shell-like armor layered one on top of the other. Its left arm was a thick tentacle while its right was a giant pincer.

What was most astonishing was its head.

No face, no eyes, just a massive octopus head, bloated and smooth, with several tentacles growing from where the chin would be, one particularly thick tentacle almost hanging down to its knees.

It seemed like a monster that had stepped out of a nightmare; each step it took resonated with a distant echo.

"What kind of monster is this?"

Ji Xinghuo had never seen such a giant before.

However, through the shadow clone, he sensed a bizarre and dangerous aura. This giant was certainly not an ordinary Sixth Rank strong being.