CHAPTER 374: CHAPTER 366: CHEN QING’S TRUE INTENTIONS!

When Chen Qing said it had begun, Weichi Feihong could distinctly feel it: the very moment the spatial array shattered, he sensed something in the unfathomably dark depths of the seabed opening its eyes!

This was an experience he’d never had in his life. In the boundless darkness, he could clearly sense something extremely terrifying awakening. You wouldn’t know where it was, you wouldn’t even know how many terrifying things had awakened in the darkness, every step taken with bated breath, and no end in sight.

"Aren’t we supposed to collect these pieces of Bai Yu?" Weichi Feihong asked cautiously from within the shell.

Through the gaps in the shell, the clearest thing to see was the Bai Yu fragments falling like snowflakes in the dark sea water, looking exceptionally magnificent.

But Weichi Feihong was curious, as it seemed from Chen Qing’s previous implication that they were to use this mother-of-pearl to collect the Bai Yu, but how?

"Shh..." Chen Qing lowered his voice, "Don’t rush..."

In the darkness, there was no sound, but everyone including Murong Yunji, who was still repairing her body, knew that the terrifying hunters lurking in the shadows had to be numerous enough to cause one’s scalp to tingle!

Indeed, they soon saw it...

Jaws opening wide, teeth as dense as the myriad stars, it was a colossal shark, immense beyond measure, with razor-sharp teeth as plentiful as the stars in the sky, making Weichi feel that this creature could probably crush anything in the world to dust.

But that thought quickly vanished...

Because almost within a few breaths’ time, the vast shark visibly began to shrink in size, the once fearsome creature howling continuously, and in just a moment, it became a gigantic mummy...

And only then did Weichi see clearly that all over this enormous shark, there were dozens of creatures like eels—human-headed and eel-bodied—but when these creatures opened their mouths, they displayed terrifying suction cups akin to those of eels, draining the mighty shark, a fearsome and powerful beast, of its blood in an instant, turning it into their prey!

"What are those?"

Murong Yunji felt a cold shiver down her spine, and Weichi Feihong also shivered involuntarily, even though they were far away, he could distinctly feel the group’s... intense craving for blood essence, making even someone with strong blood essence like himself a target for those monsters.

"Blood Guards..." Chen Qing whispered, "One of the lower tiers of guards in the Dragon Palace, a group of ancient Blood Sorcerers who pledged loyalty to the Dragon Clan and transformed into monsters. Their duty is to collect essence blood to refine into Blood Crystal Stones, which are then presented as a stipend to the upper echelon guards of the Dragon Palace!"

Weichi and Murong were stunned; how could creatures capable of rapidly desiccating such a large being sound so subservient?

"Are those... humans?" Murong asked in a low voice.

"Yes, they’re humans..." Chen Qing nodded: "Blood Sorcery itself is one of the great ancient secret techniques, designed to tempt those who wish for eternal youth. Every ancient epoch has its Blood Guards, and the Dragon Palace, adept in the art of biological grafting, finds that these tempted Blood Sorcerers merging with blood eels increase their capabilities."

"Can these creatures... perform Dragon Transformation?"

"They can’t..."

"Then what are they after?" Weichi’s eyes widened.

"The risk in Dragon Transformation is extremely high, not everyone is willing to gamble their life..." Chen Qing said with a cold laugh: "Although what Blood Guards do is menial, the return is steady. They serve nobles of the Dragon Palace, beings of substantial Dragon Blood heritage. In return for their service, the nobles grant them Dragon Blood, and these Blood Guards refine the blood using their own secretive techniques into Dragon Crystal. One crystal can keep them youthful for ten more years. Isn’t that a more stable deal than gambling on a chance at Dragon Transformation?"

"But that ghostly appearance, neither human nor ghost... what good is extended life?" Murong directly refuted, then suddenly realized something and looked at Weichi: "I didn’t mean you, haha..."

Weichi: "...."

"Who knows?" Chen Qing said with a chuckle: "Once these creatures get on land, they can transform into humans, don distinguished clothes, and they’re indistinguishable from others, living the life of the elite. Though most of their time is spent in misery, certainly there are a few days of grandeur in public, right?"

And when you think about it, isn’t it the same in the human world? Those striving in the metropolises, don’t most live just like these monsters, serving the true nobility, flaunting a bit of favor when returning home for holidays, then going back to the same endless exploitation?

Isn’t it all the same?

Wuu...

As they spoke, the familiar and frightening roar was heard again from afar; Murong immediately recognized it as that giant octopus...

"Will that thing be drained too?" Murong asked curiously.

"No..." Chen Qing shook his head: "The tentacles of the Heavenly Ghost Octopus are incomparably flexible, specially designed to counter these Blood Guards. If caught, they become excellent nourishment. They wouldn’t dare approach that creature."

"So, what about us?"

"We wait for them to lead us away...."

"Lead... us? You mean to deal with them?" Both widened their eyes, could this guy truly be fearless of being drained dry like the others?

"No need to deal with them, just close the clamshell, they wouldn’t dare to lay a hand on it...."

"Why is that?"

Before getting an answer, they saw the Head Blood Eels swiftly approaching, and Weichi hurriedly closed the clamshell.

But instinctively, something still did not feel right. How was this different from sitting ducks?

Feeling the clamshell being pushed, Weichi looked at Chen Qing with doubt....

Chen Qing whispered, "Don’t be nervous, the clamshell is used for cultivating top-grade Bai Yu Essence, these low-ranking Blood Guards don’t have the right to open it. Even the nobles wouldn’t dare to just open the clamshell without knowing the age of the Jade Essence inside, risking the loss of their vital energy."

"But... they’ll bring us to those high-ranking Dragon Clan members you spoke of, right?"

"Of course..." Chen Qing nodded, "The clamshell is extremely precious. Upon encountering one, Blood Guards would naturally take it to offer to their superiors!"

"Then..." Weichi choked, wasn’t that still a death sentence?

If these so-called low-end Blood Guards were so formidable, what could the high-ranking Dragon Clan members be capable of? Were they just waiting to be captured and served up on a platter?

Murong was also staring at Chen Qing in astonishment, suspecting he might be insane, and even harboring doubts—knowing so much about the Dragon Palace, could it be that Chen Qing was... one of them?

The idea seemed absurd, but the more she thought about it, the more it made sense.

Chen Qing’s so-called divine techniques were unusual to begin with. In just a few years, he transformed Jiangnan into a force capable of resisting the Imperial Court, along with the bizarre heritage in the academy and his previously ordinary background.

Now, what if he was ancient’s emissary from the start?

Murong looked at Chen Qing, her gaze growing wary unconsciously.

"What’s on your mind?" Chen Qing rolled his eyes and shook his head, "How could you escape without getting close to the Dragon Palace’s upper echelons?"

"Your Majesty is thinking... we can use those monsters to get out?" Weichi Feihong’s mind was obviously sharper, he quickly caught onto something, "The nobles of the Dragon Palace, they’d evacuate immediately?"

"They’ll certainly retreat!" Chen Qing smiled, "The Heavenly Ghost Octopus is out of control, if they don’t retreat, are they waiting to die?"

"Is the Heavenly Ghost Octopus that terrifying? Even the Dragon Palace’s nobility can’t deal with it?" Murong asked curiously.

"Biological Weapons are designed to combat the ancient ones, once out of control they’re naturally hard to handle." Chen Qing patiently explained, "But it’s not true they can’t be handled. When the Dragon Palace designed these things, they certainly left a way out. It’s just that now, it’s probably not possible to solve it."

"Why?" Weichi and Murong asked almost simultaneously.

"Because the top Dragon Clan members can’t be awakened for now...." Chen Qing laughed, "The fiercer the creature, the more resources needed to fully recover their vitality. Immense amounts of water vapor, high-quality Blood Crystal Stones, cannot be lacked. Originally these Biological Weapons could serve as fertilizers, but the appearance of the Heavenly Ghost Octopus has made the situation tense. If I’m not wrong, the Blood Guards will take the risk to quickly collect Blood Crystals that haven’t been absorbed by the Heavenly Ghost Octopus while at the same time following the upper echelon’s order to quickly move to a safe place!"

"I see!" Weichi understood instantly, it was about catching a smooth ride.

"But... what about the Bai Yu here?" Murong Yunji expressed her confusion, "Wasn’t it what you have been yearning for? If we evacuate now, what was the point of choosing this place before?"

"Bai Yu?" Chen Qing suddenly laughed, "Who do you think broke this grand formation? Why do you think I broke it? Do you think the Dragon Palace nobles, upon evacuating, would give up their treasures?"

Murong Yunji: "..."

At that moment, she understood too. It turned out that Chen Qing was not only planning on hitching a ride, he was also eyeing the peaches!