An Alchemist's Path to Eternity

Golden Armor left the Five-Colored Clam. He gathered the remaining forces and set out at once.

Seeing him go, Golden Mud let out a long sigh. The battle had been planned for many years. Yet at the final moment, everything went terribly wrong. First was Seafall refining the Profound Rock Armor into his own body, then Seven Rings’ ruthless resolve.... He had chosen to gamble on his tribulation, risking not only his own fate but also the safety and success of his companions in the process. And then, at the very end, an unexpected outsider appeared and reaped the gains. A human cultivator!

The earlier problems were unexpected but still understandable. After all, when a clan faced total annihilation, resistance was inevitable. But even with that resistance and the subsequent damage, if the human cultivator had not appeared, the Overlord Crab clan would still have been the greatest victor. Yet that person appeared without warning, seized the Demon Emperor’s remains, and with a single palm strike, killed three and severely injured four of the main fighters there.

When Golden Mud recalled the palm projection, his heart trembled. It had shone like a blazing green sun. That palm strike must have been prepared for a long time and unleashed at the perfect moment. Golden Pincer and the others were already struggling under the lightning tribulation. Even in perfect condition, that strike would have left them gravely wounded if not dead. The only one with just minor injuries was Golden Armor, whose defenses were formidable even by Overlord Crab standards.

”If I ever find out who that person is, I’ll make him suffer until he begs for death!”

A ruthless glint flashed through his aged eyes. Then, as if remembering something, he sent out a voice transmission. Before long, a demonic crab crawled in. ”Patriarch, what are your orders?”

”What are the other four clans doing right now?”

The demonic crab seemed ready with an answer and replied at once, ”The Green Emperor Crab clan is mourning the fall of their patriarch. The Nine-Legged Poison King Crab clan has fallen into chaos, and a number of members are fighting over the position of patriarch. As for the Crimson Rock Crab clan, they’re gathering forces from their clan territory and plan to camp at our former encampment on Profound Rock Island. As for the Demon Spider Crab clan... It’s strange, actually. They left only a small number of members here, while the main force hurriedly left with Red Face.”

Golden Mud was not surprised at first. The first two clans were ripe for Golden Armor to pick, as expected. As for the third, he could negotiate with Crimson Flame. But what about the Demon Spider Crabs? Golden Mud was filled with doubt. At such a time, they should have stayed to divide the spoils. Instead, they withdrew. What’s Red Face doing?

***

Three days went by in the blink of an eye. In the coral trench, red light filled the surroundings. During this time, Luo Chen restored his condition and processed the Crab Kings he had obtained. The auxiliary ingredients for refining Black Sovereign Paste had long since been used up, so he could only process the ingredients now and refine them later. During the process, he also reviewed the gains and losses of the battle.

The Mystic Flame Sword was destroyed; two of the Three Piercing Nails were lost, and he had also suffered minor injuries. As for the gains, they were far greater. Crab Kings enough to support his physique cultivation until the peak of the third tier, the Profound Rock Armor, the Cliff Serpent corpse, and lastly, the tens of thousands of souls within the soul banner. Coming here had been an excellent idea, and things could have hardly gone any better.

”As expected, the greater the risk, the greater the reward. I really struck it rich this time. And after going through all these fights, I know my weaknesses. Once things settle down, I’ll work on them one by one, and I’ll get my combat power up to par. That alone makes this trip worthwhile!”

After finishing running through his inventory, Luo Chen packed up the items inside the cave residence. All sorts of things were stuffed into his spacious storage ring. Then, it was time to leave. Although the coral trench was hidden, it was still within the territory of the demonic crabs and would eventually be discovered.

Just before he left the cave residence, he heard a rumbling sound—not thunder but a belch.

He put away the Divine Seal Compass and the red light faded at once. Only the faint glow of the Blood Coral remained and filled the trench. In the winding trench lay a massive Black-Scaled Flood Dragon. Its body was curled, its eyelids droopy, and its belly bulging. From time to time, its mouth opened, and saliva dripped down. A low buzzing sound escaped its throat. Indeed, the rumbling sound just now had come from Black King! He had swallowed the Cliff Serpent whole! Since then, he had remained like this, as if suffering from indigestion.

”Black King, time to go!”

Black King struggled to open his eyes. ”Are we going home, Master?”

Luo Chen frowned. ”Can you shrink a bit?”

”That might be a bit difficult, but I’ll try...”

Black King rolled around, stretched a bit, then circulated his demonic energy in an attempt to shrink down. Yet even after some effort, he only reduced his size from thirty zhang to a little over ten zhang. He was still too large. Such a massive body could still stir up attention.

Luo Chen shook his head. ”You greedy fatty, get in here!”

As he spoke, a small cauldron flew out. Under Luo Chen’s control, it quickly grew enormous and pushed aside the seawater. Black King saw the scene and hesitated. ”Master, I can’t digest the Cliff Serpent corpse inside. And it’s too cramped.”

Inside the Primordial Unity Cauldron existed a separate world. That space had been created by a late-stage Nascent Soul powerhouse, Azure Frost, using the power of void laws combined with the crafting methods of Heaven Smelter. Naturally, it was utterly immense. However, with Luo Chen’s mana and proficiency in restrictions, he was still unable to fully expand the internal space. That was why Black King complained it was too cramped.

”Just get in when I tell you to. Stop talking nonsense. Once we’re back, I’ll find you a place where you can sleep all you want,” Luo Chen scolded him with displeasure. He is getting more and more spoiled.

Seeing Luo Chen growing angry, Black King shivered and hurried into the Primordial Unity Cauldron. Luo Chen then formed a hand seal; the cauldron shrank at once and slipped into his sleeve.

”Let’s go!” Luo Chen said softly.

After breaking through the sea surface, he sent out a divine consciousness transmission. Before long, a seagull flew through the air and circled obediently before him. Luo Chen said, ”My mana hasn’t recovered much yet, so you’ll have to be my mount for now.”

Heavenjade immediately expanded to a sufficient size. Luo Chen jumped onto her back and pointed in a direction. Heavenjade spread her wings and flew that way.

Not long after they left, a group of tourists arrived at the coral trench.

”Ahem... ahem...” Red Face coughed strangely as he stood outside the trench, frowning in confusion. ”That human is inside?”

A round glow flew out from the crab group and spoke in a respectful tone, ”Yes, should be.”

Red Face shook his head. ”Aside from some lingering aura, there’s no trace of anyone.”

Within a certain range, his sensing ability rivaled that of a Demon Emperor. He did not even need to send the clansmen inside to investigate. Just in case, he still ordered his subordinates to search the area, but they could only confirm what he’d already sensed.

”This is the answer your Hidden Dust Sand clan gives me?” Red Face asked coldly as his aura surged outward.

Although his aura looked fierce, it lacked real strength. Even so, it was enough to make the glowing figure tremble. It hurriedly replied, ”Lord Primal Cloak said the human was here! We even tracked the nest of that Heavenjade Battle Gull!”

”Is that seagull still there?” Red Face suddenly asked.

The Hidden Dust Sand creature, having only recently entered the third tier, was not terribly intelligent. It paused for a moment, then replied, ”It sometimes goes out to hunt for food. It doesn’t seem to be on that island right now.”

”Damn it!”

A sense of frustration rose in Red Face’s heart. This place appeared to be abandoned, and the disappearance of the seagull confirmed it. In other words, his plan had failed. He had rushed here without even tending to his injuries, yet everything had come to nothing.

”I want an explanation from Primal Cloak! Otherwise, no matter how vast the Profound Rock Sea Region is, there won’t be any place left for your clan to survive!”

After speaking, he led the remaining elites of the Demon Spider Crab clan away in anger.

The round glow stayed behind, feeling at a loss. How would they ask Primal Cloak for an explanation? Even the round glow did not know how to find its master. It looked at the empty coral trench and gave a bitter smile. ”My lord, where did you go? If you don’t return soon, we will have to move again.”