Refining the Mountains and Rivers

Yun Teng took a deep breath, confusion etched on his face. "City Lord, how can you endure this? This Qin Yu is too insolent!"

Blue Sea smiled. "Thousandhonor Marquis is unfathomably deep. Since this person wants to try something, what's wrong with helping him? As for his attitude..."

He looked at Yun Teng and said, "You have followed by my side for many years, so how can you not have realized a truth? The abyss has always revered strength above all…if I do not have full confidence that I can suppress Qin Yu, then he naturally has the qualifications to be insolent in front of me."

Yun Teng was puzzled. He couldn't say that he knew the entirety of the City Lord's strength, but it was far deeper than what it seemed on the surface.

Qin Yu could kill Qi Zhen, so he had to be strong. But if someone said he could compare with the City Lord or be even stronger than that, Yun Teng wouldn't believe it.

Blue Sea saw his confusion but didn't give any further explanation. He didn't care much about Qin Yu at first, but now…hoho, it seemed he had underestimated him.

Having killed Qi Zhen and taken revenge for the Old King's Lineage, did he plan on substituting for Cloud Billow? If so, then giving him a much higher evaluation wasn't a problem.

And Qin Yu's parting words still echoed in Blue Sea's mind. They would meet again…it seemed there was another profound meaning behind these words.

Interesting, how truly interesting. Perhaps even more twists and turns would appear in this competition for the throne.

Blue Sea took a deep breath. When he let it out, a dazzling light erupted in his eyes.

In any case, he believed he would be the last one smiling. For this goal, he had prepared a corresponding price…he would not fail, he absolutely would not!

…

Qin Yu looked at the round bead that gradually sank into the ground below, and he smiled. Such a difficult thing had been solved so easily. It seemed that his luck was quite good.

He hoped that his good luck would continue to last until he returned from the Nightmare Ancestral Land.

But committing the result entirely to luck was clearly an irresponsible approach for handling his own life.

His eyes flashed with a sharp light. He was waiting, waiting for the little blue lamp's next action.

Some time ago –

When Qi Zhen's consciousness fell silent, a weak fluctuation appeared in his connection with the little blue lamp.

This was not an accident. Although the little blue lamp hadn't sent a thought transmission, the act of shaking their connection was in itself a hint.

If it didn't want to do something, then with the little blue lamp's carefulness it wouldn't have done that. The long silence from before was clear evidence of this.

In other words, it was prepared to do something…Qin Yu had no idea what the little blue lamp wanted to do, but his intuition told him that it wouldn't be simple.

Originally, even if Qi Zhen fused into his shadow and Thousandhonor Marquis cooperated with him, Qin Yu had no confidence that he could destroy the Nightmare Ancestral Land.

After all, what he had to face was a powerful existence code named Old Turtle, an existence so frightening that even Thousandhonor Marquis was scared.

But now, with the little blue lamp's movement, Qin Yu finally had some basis for confidence.

He had no idea how many people would try to take the stage in this upcoming major drama. But maybe he could try to be the last one remaining!

…

The war against the Nightmare Beast Territory ended. The final outcome was as expected. The Giant Alligator King, Golden Eagle King, and the rest of the seven remaining nightmare beast kings were slain, and six precious king-rank crystal nucleuses were offered up.

Innumerable nightmare beasts had died. Although this war hadn't lasted long, it had severely damaged the Nightmare Beast Territory.

For at least the next thousand years, they wouldn't have any strength to cause disturbances. When they regained their strength, that would be the time for the next harvest.

The nightmare beast kings might not be ignorant of this, but what could they do? If they wanted to survive, they could only endure the humiliation. To put it bluntly, they had to fall to their knees and beg.

Of course, the Nightmare Clan wasn't without losses. The reason they only obtained six king-rank crystal nucleuses in the end was because the Giant Alligator King blew himself up.

This strongest of nightmare beast kings had only been a thread away from breaking into the King boundary. He desperately fought back against the suppression of the Nightmare Clan, finally managing to successfully destroy his own crystal nucleus.

A peak Demon Commander powerhouse had poor luck and was tied down by the Giant Alligator King. Without being able to escape, he was blown apart and met a cruel and horrible death.

The other Nightmare powerhouses that surrounded the Giant Alligator King were wounded. Many of them were severely injured and would need at least several years to recover.

Cloud Boundless withdrew fully intact. In fact, when the troop went to encircle the Giant Alligator King, he was at the forefront. But he was smart enough and sensed something wrong, and thus ran away quickly. This was the only reason he managed to escape the core of the explosion.

This caused Seven Wounds Clan Elder's teeth to itch with hate. How come this bastard wasn't blown up?

Because Qi Zhen and Cloud Billow had died, the Ancient King's Lineage and Old King's Lineage tore apart all pretense of face. When the two factions were damaged in the war, if one looked closely they would see the handiwork of the other party involved.

Thousandhonor Marquis had a private talk with Seven Wounds Clan Elder and then found Cloud Boundless afterwards. It was unknown what they talked about specifically, but both sides maintained a certain degree of restraint and the conflict didn't erupt beyond all redemption.

But everyone understood that the Ancient King's Lineage and the Old King's Lineage were not the winners of the nightmare beast hunt. They had each lost their best successor. This time, the struggle for the new King's throne might not be their stage!

…

Seven Wounds Clan Elder fell on his knees, his face full of shame. "Patriarch, I am responsible for Qi Zhen's death. I ask you to punish me!"

Across from him, the Ancient King Patriarch had a calm expression. His eyes were shut tight as he leaned back against a chair. He was like a silent mountain, solemn and dignified. He slowly said, "Tell me everything. From beginning to end."

Seven Wounds Clan Elder didn't stand up. He remained kneeling on the floor as he explained everything that occurred in the Nightmare Beast Territory.

The Ancient King Patriarch opened his eyes, a trillion bolts of lightning flashing there. "Does this matter have any signs of Thousandhonor Marquis' influence?"

Seven Wounds Clan Elder shook his head, "Patriarch, I have carefully investigated what happened, and although there are some coincidences, there are no signs of his interference."

The Ancient King Patriarch nodded, not responding.

Seven Wounds Clan Elder clenched his teeth, "Now that Qi Zhen has died…who is our alternative?"

This was perhaps the most important issue in the Ancient King's Lineage right now. No matter how outstanding Qi Zhen was, it was meaningless now that he had died.

Whoever was chosen would rise up to become a pivotal figure in the entire family, and have the qualifications to aspire to the peak!

"There is no alternative." The Ancient King Patriarch's voice was calm, but exuded an inexplicable meaning.

Seven Wounds Clan Elder stiffened. His eyes widened with disbelief. How could the solemn Ancient King's Lineage not have a backup plan for the struggle for the new King's throne?

Qi Zhen had been killed but the Patriarch said there was no other choice. If he didn't hear this with his own ears he simply wouldn't have believed it.

A trace of bitterness and helplessness appeared in the Ancient King Patriarch's eyes. The ancestral land had given a reminder to the Ancient King's Lineage that someone with the royal bloodline would awaken amongst their ranks and inherit the empty throne. He had already determined there would be no problems, so why would he need to make separate preparations?

That would be disrespectful to the ancestral land!

And now, while Qi Zhen had indeed awakened the royal bloodline, he had perished midway…this was different from what the ancestral land had said. Where had a problem occurred?

Why would another royal bloodline awaken in the Old King's Lineage? Was Qi Zhen and Cloud Billow's deaths really so simple?

The Ancient King Patriarch's heart fluttered with restlessness. This was the reason he had traveled to Adversity Peak City to participate in the struggle for the throne. Otherwise, he wouldn't be willing to come so close to this city that was so close to the ancestral land…

This concerned a secret…a great secret that only the few highest ranked people within the Nightmare Clan knew about.

The purpose of the throne was to secure the hopes of the family, allowing them to prosper. But this also represented an unknown terror!

He suppressed these thoughts and looked up. The Ancient King Patriarch said, "That old thing from the Old King's Lineage has arrived. I will personally discuss this issue with him. Pass down an order. The other clansmen are not to act rashly."

Seven Wounds Clan Elder nodded respectfully.

He was very strong, so he had the qualifications to be arrogant. But, the Patriarch was stronger. As for how much stronger…even now, he hadn't discovered the Patriarch's limits.

If the will of the abyss hadn't limited a tribe to only having one true King, he suspected that the Patriarch would have already broken into the King boundary.

But even if he wasn't at the King boundary, someone like the Patriarch couldn't be defined by the strength of the Demon Commander realm anymore.

At the same time, in the cracked and messy Bluetile Courtyard, Cloud Boundless respectfully bowed to an old man sitting in a seat of honor.

It was a really, really old person.

Qin Yu could clearly sense the rich aura of death and decay coming from this person. He was even surprised that this person was still living.

His body was incredibly withered, like a bag of skin hanging off bones. The sparse white hairs on his head could almost be counted.

But such an old person, someone who seemed as if they would die at any time, was the Patriarch of the Old King's Lineage, and someone who Cloud Boundless bowed respectfully towards.

This alone proved that what he saw wasn't everything. This unbelievably old person had to be hiding a terrifying power.

"Rise. I know what happened already. You did well." The Old King Patriarch's voice was clear, but it sounded weak and weary. He looked at Cloud Mist, "Girl, it's been rough on you for these past years. Everything we owe you will be repaid to you."

Cloud Mist's eyes reddened. She fell to her knees and said, "Old Ancestor, your grandchild did not suffer!"

The Old King Patriarch smiled and nodded in gratification. After hinting for her to stand up, he turned and looked at Qin Yu, "You are Qin Yu? Good, good. Before, Boundless told me that you are an outstanding young man, and now I see that you live up to your reputation."

Qin Yu's heart skipped a beat. After being locked onto by this person's gaze, he felt as if he was being seen through. The only time he felt a similar feeling was when he faced the Demon Dragon Clan Elder, Ao Fa.

As he thought, the Old King's Lineage still had their sea-suppressing divine pillar!

Qin Yu had long since suspected this. Cloud Boundless was strong, but could he fight with the Ancient King's Lineage all the way until now with his strength alone?

Facts proved that the true boss had waited until today to appear.

But what was the reason?

Despite it being something as important as the struggle for the throne, the Old King Patriarch didn't come to Adversity Peak City until now. Expanding his scope of thinking, this was also the same for the Ancient King's Lineage, and also the leaders of the new faction. After all, Qin Yu hadn't heard Cloud Boundless mention those people before.

Did they not care about the inheritance of the throne? That clearly wasn't right. But if they did care, why wouldn't they personally come to handle things?

Or to be more direct, why didn't these terrifying old fellows that shook the heart just wade into battle and participate in the struggle themselves?

If they could become Patriarchs, would their bloodline be lacking? Did they not satisfy the qualifications to be the new Nightmare King? It was simply a joke!

At this moment, countless thoughts tumbled in Qin Yu's mind. Then, one floated to the top…could these people also know about the existence of the 'Old Turtle'?

As this thought appeared his heartbeat started to accelerate. The more he dwelled on it, the more likely it seemed.

If it weren't for Qi Zhen having played too much and pushed himself into a half-dead half-asleep state, Qin Yu would have definitely asked him about this.

If this was true…the muddy waters of the Nightmare Clan were more than ten times, a hundred times deeper than he imagined!

His throat turned dry and his voice became hoarse. He bowed, "I greet the Patriarch!"

The Old King Patriarch smiled and nodded, "Stand up. There's no need to be so nervous. Since I have agreed to Boundless' proposition, I have already regarded you as one of our people."

He coughed twice and waved a hand, "Boundless, Cloud Mist, you two leave first. I have some words to speak to Qin Yu alone."

Cloud Boundless and Cloud Mist respectfully nodded before turning and leaving.

When the two left, the Old King Patriarch smiled and looked at Qin Yu. He gestured with a hand, "Please sit down. I apologize if there was any previous affront."

Qin Yu shook his head, "There is no need for Patriarch to be so polite."

"It's not good if I'm not polite. There are so many monsters, ghosts, and snakes wandering around that if one isn't careful, they will accidentally step on one and cause an accident." The Old King Patriarch smiled and calmly looked at Qin Yu, "Now, I have a question, and I hope you can answer me earnestly…just who are you?"