“Whoosh!”
A figure in the distance flew over hastily. With a flip of his hand, Xiao Chen placed the Sea Monarch Crown in the Universe Ring. The approaching person was Han Qinghe, who was preparing to retire and make his breakthrough to quasi-Emperor.
Xiao Chen’s heart sank. What kind of major incident could rattle Elder Han Qinghe, a great grandmaster-level Martial Sage who was preparing to retire, so badly?
Han Qinghe looked anxious. As he flew over, a strong wind blew. When he arrived before Xiao Chen, all the wind suddenly stopped blowing.
Based on these tiny details, one could tell that this peak great grandmaster-level Martial Sage was indeed on the verge of breaking through to quasi-Emperor.
Xiao Chen smiled and said, “Elder Han, your strength increased again. You will probably be able to break through to quasi-Emperor in a year or so.”
Han Qinghe’s expression warmed slightly in a smile. He did not avoid this topic, saying, “I only managed to refine a small portion of my Heavenly Sage Laws into Heavenly Laws. I am still quite a distance from quasi-Emperor. However, now that Sect Master has advanced to a Prime, I’m confident of advancing to quasi-Emperor.”
With a Prime Martial Emperor giving pointers to a peak great grandmaster-level Martial Sage, advancing to quasi-Emperor was indeed almost a sure thing.
In fact, as long as the Prime Martial Emperor paid an enormous price, the Martial Sage could advance to Martial Emperor as well. However, the resulting Martial Emperors were much weaker. There was not much difference between such Martial Emperors and the Deity Race cultivators who advanced to Martial Emperor by relying on faith.
Such Martial Emperors were a far cry from Martial Emperors who broke through themselves. Ten of such false Martial Emperors would be no match for one true Martial Emperor.
“However, no matter how much I improve, quasi-Emperor is my limit. I’m far from comparable to the Azure Dragon King. Your future is great.”
Han Qinghe paused here for a moment. As he looked at Xiao Chen, he sighed in his heart. He had watched Xiao Chen grow as Xiao Chen walked his path.
Xiao Chen’s growth speed was fantastic. From a nobody when he had just entered the Kunlun Realm, he had suddenly emerged, taking giant steps, as someone whom all the true inheritors of the Supreme Sky Sect had to look up to.
After he rose at the Supreme Sky Sect, he made a name for himself at the Savage Battlefield, his fight with Bai Wuxue garnering him fame throughout the Tianwu Domain.
After that, Xiao Chen acknowledged his identity at the Proud Son of Heaven Ranking. He dominated the various outstanding talents with his own power and climbed to the top rank. Even until today, no one could surpass him.
Then, Xiao Chen kicked down Di Wuque at the Sage Mark Monument, cementing his fame before disappearing for two years. However, when he returned, he immediately reestablished himself in this age of flourishing geniuses.
Finally, he swept through all the younger generation of the Kunlun Continent and forced his way into being conferred King. His call of whether anyone dared to say they were not convinced had been powerful and resonant, stirring everyone’s blood.
Xiao Chen gained the Azure Dragon King title, and fame followed his merits. Even the three Primes pressuring him to give up on the title had failed.
Xiao Chen contained his smile as he said, “I might be thick-skinned enough to accept others calling me the Azure Dragon King. However, I do not deserve First Elder calling me that.”
His words were sincere. The First Elder before him was a senior worth respecting. Even if he became a Prime in the future, he would still treat him with respect.
Xiao Chen did not care what others said about him, whether it was true or false, polite or humiliating. As long as he was true to his heart, that was all that mattered.
Elder Han was very satisfied with Xiao Chen’s attitude. Xiao Chen’s current accomplishments were extraordinary. He was upright, lofty, and unyielding. However, he did not show any arrogance, nor did he act high and mighty.
“Haha! In that case, this old man will address you the same as before, Little Brother Xiao Chen,” Han Qinghe laughed.
Xiao Chen nodded and said, “I wonder, why is First Elder here personally? You must have something to discuss with me.”
When Han Qinghe heard this, he slowly withdrew the smile on his face. He said, “Your trouble came. A group of people from the Heavenly Starry Ocean, claiming to be the Sea Monarch’s descendants, want you to hand over the Sea Monarch Crown.”
Xiao Chen could not help but smile bitterly. During the King conferral ceremony, he had already guessed that the Sea Monarch Crown would attract a lot of trouble. However, he had not expected it to come so soon.
The Sea Monarch had been the monarch of the entire oceanic world—someone who could hold his own against the Azure Emperor. Even the unrivaled Azure Emperor had to fight him three times before managing to kill him.
Only after that did the influence of the Dragon’s Gate spread into the Heavenly Starry Ocean. Before this, it had never succeeded.
After the Sea Monarch died, the territory he ruled naturally fell apart. Many old Marquises started declaring themselves the direct descendant of the Sea Monarch. They were still active in the Heavenly Starry Ocean even today.
However, the true line of descent, the Sea Monarch’s daughter, Princess Qin, sealed herself for some reason, sleeping for ten thousand years without waking up.
Hence, although these factions were complex, there was no true leader. No one was convinced of anyone. The situation was a complete mess.
As a result, these factions were much weaker compared to factions that rose up later, like the Northern Sea Alliance and the Cyclic Astral Palace.
However, if these factions banded together for some reason, they could not be underestimated since they were capable of applying a lot of pressure.
If the Supreme Sky Sect were not a large sect, forcing them to wait outside, they would have directly attacked him.
“The Sea Monarch’s old guards split into many factions, of which there are eleven larger ones. The four strongest had been conferred King in the north, south, east, and west, each of them ruling a section of the ocean, when the Sea Monarch was still around. They were the Northern Sea King, the Southern Sea King, the Eastern Sea King, and the Western Sea King.
“Fortunately, the four strongest factions did not send people over. However, the remaining seven all did.
“Aside from the four Sea Kings, there were seven great Marquises under him. They were assigned by colors: black, white, yellow, green, azure, blue, and purple. Hence, they were the Black-Clad Marquis, the White-Clad Marquis, the Yellow-Clad Marquis, the Green-Clad Marquis, the Azure-Clad Marquis, the Blue-Clad Marquis, and the Purple-Clad Marquis. The ones that came are the subordinates of the seven Marquises.”
Han Qinghe gave a quick description of the Sea Monarch’s old guards—the four Sea Kings and the seven colored Marquises—which showed how prosperous the Sea Monarch’s time had been.
Xiao Chen asked, “How strong are the four Sea Kings and the seven colored Marquises today?”
As the First Elder of the Supreme Sky Sect, Han Qinghe’s network of information was much more extensive than Xiao Chen’s. He quickly answered, “While the Sea Monarch was alive, the four Sea Kings were Prime Martial Emperors. The seven colored Marquises were Sovereign Martial Emperors.”
Hearing this, Xiao Chen could not help but be flabbergasted at such a horrifying faction. He wondered how the Azure Emperor managed to beat down the Sea Monarch Palace to the point of them scattering.
Han Qinghe continued at a deliberate pace, “Of course, they cannot be compared to how they were then. The four Sea Kings now are only Sovereign Martial Emperors, and the seven colored Marquises are only Greater Heavenly Martial Emperors.”
Xiao Chen’s head ached when he heard this. Such strength was not weak at all. If they were to band together, the glory of the Sea Monarch Palace might reappear.
However, based on what Han Qinghe said, each faction believed themself the strongest and would not yield to another. With a history of all sorts of fights and grudges, there was no possibility of reconciliation.
“How many people did they send? I will never hand my Sea Monarch Crown over to them.”
Xiao Chen sounded calm, but he displayed an unequivocal attitude.
The Sea Monarch Crown was a bona fide Emperor Grade Secret Treasure; furthermore, it was one that the Sea Monarch had used. It could greatly strengthen Xiao Chen.
Besides, the establishment of a sect required an Emperor Grade Secret Treasure to provide suppression, so that the territory’s talents could develop.
Even if quasi-Emperors came, he would not hand it over.
If a Martial Emperor, which was one level higher, came to pressure Xiao Chen, the saber light that the Azure Emperor left behind could extract a miserable price from the other party.
Han Qinghe said, “The seven colored Marquises each sent a person, all of them peak great grandmaster-level Martial Sages, people who are only a step shy of quasi-Emperor. They came in a great rush, and Shui Lingling is currently entertaining them.”
“Let’s go. Let me see what kind of people came. To think they want me to hand over the Sea Monarch Crown the moment they speak!”
The two moved very quickly, heading for the main palace of the Supreme Sky Sect’s inner city. Soon, they arrived outside the palace.
Xiao Chen extended his Spiritual Sense and clearly saw the seven’s appearances and cultivations.
These seven people wore robes of various colors that had multiple True Dragons embroidered on them. What they wore were dragon robes, and they looked mighty.
[TL Note: Dragon robes are another way of saying imperial robes, which are the emperor’s court dress.]
Even before the two entered the palace, Xiao Chen picked up a strong tension. All sorts of shouting came from inside.
“Miss Shui, the Supreme Sky Sect better be able to differentiate between right and wrong. The Sea Monarch Crown is the Sea Monarch’s Emperor Grade Secret Treasure. For both logical and sentimental reasons, we, the Sea Monarch’s descendants, should be the ones to manage it. Do not stop us!”
“That’s right. We only have one purpose in coming here today. That is to make Xiao Chen hand over the Sea Monarch Crown. Otherwise, the four Sea Kings and the seven colored Marquises will attack together. Even if Ying Zongtian is a Prime, he can forget about stopping us.”
“Why is Xiao Chen not here yet? Does he really think that he can put on airs with us just because he is the Azure Dragon King?!”
Xiao Chen’s conferred land was in the Heavenly Starry Ocean, so Shui Lingling did not dare to offend these old factions of the Heavenly Starry Ocean. She dealt with them with a smiling face and gently spoke reason, hoping to get them to back off.
She even suggested that as long as the seven colored Marquises did not pursue this matter, the Supreme Sky Sect was willing to compensate them.
However, the more Shui Lingling gave way, the more outrageous these people got. They even said that if Xiao Chen did not hand over the Sea Monarch Crown, he would definitely not be able to establish himself if he went to the Heavenly Starry Ocean.
“While he is in the Kunlun Continent, he can still use his Azure Dragon King title. However, once he comes to the Heavenly Starry Ocean, I guarantee that he will turn from a dragon into a worm. Even a wave can smash him to death,” an old man dressed in black dragon robes said with extreme disdain. Of the seven, this person’s criticism and tone were the sharpest.
[TL Note: Chinese dragons look more like snakes unlike western dragons, which look more like winged lizards or winged dinosaurs.]
“You talk really big. This Xiao dearly wants to know how you, a wave, can smash me to death. Do you dare to have an exchange with me and see who is a dragon and who is a worm?!”
As Xiao Chen stood outside the palace, he felt that something was wrong. These people were here simply to pick a quarrel; there was no room for negotiation.
However, enough was enough.
Sometimes, even if one knew that something was inappropriate, one could not help getting confused and arguing unnecessarily. If someone deserved a slap in the face, one should just hit them resolutely.
Upon seeing Xiao Chen enter the hall, Shui Lingling, who was sitting in the middle, revealed a surprised expression. She already guessed what Xiao Chen managed to hear from outside the palace.
Xiao Chen, hold back and don’t kill these people. The seven colored Marquises have great influence in the Western Sea of the Heavenly Starry Ocean. You are about to go to Heavenly Star Island. You cannot rashly offend them.
Shui Lingling moved her lips slightly, projecting her voice to Xiao Chen.
After speaking for so long and not seeing these seven people step back, Shui Lingling felt very frustrated; hence, she did not stop Xiao Chen.
As long as he just taught them a lesson and did not kill them, it would be fine.
Getting the other party to back off was impossible with just words. He needed to display his strength.
Xiao Chen nodded slightly and gave the black-clad old man a once-over, sizing him up.
