Immortal Martial Emperor

"So this is the Sumeru Sea?"

"The Imperial Family of the Xiahuang Ancient Kingdom is so extravagant! This is clearly a Different Space. A Different Space of this scale would require at least a hundred Yin Yang Realm experts working together to create!"

"It’s incredible!"

Countless experts stood aboard the Yellow Heaven Battleship, gazing at the vast Sumeru Sea before them. The sight of the innumerable powerful and rare Desolate Beasts left them all in a state of utter shock.

Hong Yu stood among the crowd, taking in the scene.

His eyes were serene.

’Compared to the Sumeru Sea, aren’t my Profound Celestial Tower and Rashomon both on a higher level?’

ROAR!

Suddenly, a deep, muffled roar echoed up from the seabed.

A massive whirlpool suddenly appeared on the ocean’s surface. White-capped waves churned and rolled, and deep within the vortex, a pair of blood-red eyes, each as large as a small boat, hinted at a monstrously huge creature.

RUMBLE!

The black monster slowly surfaced.

Everyone gasped.

It was an Octopus, a Desolate Beast, waving its eight sharp tentacles.

It was just that...

This Octopus was simply enormous!

Even excluding its thousand-meter-long tentacles, its massive head alone was over five hundred meters tall. It was an absolute behemoth.

ROAR!

The Octopus let out a furious roar, and the many Desolate Beasts that had just been fighting instantly stopped.

They all stared in unison at the Octopus in the whirlpool, then fled for their lives as if they had just seen their natural predator.

A full five minutes later.

The Octopus fully emerged above the surface. It didn’t attack the Yellow Heaven Battleship, but simply floated there silently, its towering body an imposing, mountain-like presence.

Only then did the crowd recover from their shock.

A single glance from this Octopus was enough to shatter one’s spirit. How terrifying!

"Grandpa Huang!"

Venerable Xiahuang and Xiahuang Shang both stepped forward and called out respectfully.

"Mm."

A faint, ancient-sounding voice drifted from the Octopus.

"..."

Everyone was stunned. ’Holy crap, is that Octopus their Grandpa Huang? A human and a beast?’

Fortunately, their doubts were soon dispelled.

Above the Octopus’s head, the void rippled, and a burly figure slowly materialized.

He had long, silver-white hair flowing down his back and wore a suit of Crystal Glaze Armor that gave him an imposing air. In his hand, he tightly gripped a brilliant Golden Battle Halberd.

"Venerable Xiahuang, Xiahuang Shang, is it your turn to lead the group this time?" the old man asked faintly.

Venerable Xiahuang said, "Yes, Grandpa Huang!"

Xiahuang Shang stepped forward. He seemed to know the old man better than Venerable Xiahuang did. He smiled. "Grandpa Huang, it’s been many years. You’re still as hale and hearty as ever!"

"Hahaha, you brat. Still such a sweet-talker!"

the old man said affectionately.

This scene made Venerable Xiahuang’s eyes flicker with coldness and jealousy.

The old man seemed to sense it and shot Venerable Xiahuang a faint glance but didn’t say anything more. Instead, he turned to Hong Yu and the others. "You are all True Dragon Prodigies from your respective kingdoms. Very good. There are more of you this time than the last. Xiahuang Shang, explain the rules of the pre-battle hunt to them."

"Yes, Grandpa Huang!"

Xiahuang Shang nodded, then turned to the crowd and announced the rules.

It turned out that the pre-battle hunt consisted of three stages.

The first stage was this vast ocean before them. All participants in the hunt had to subdue a Desolate Beast in the Sumeru Sea to use as a mount.

It would stop once five thousand people had secured a mount.

Then, everyone would ride their mount and compete to see who could be the fastest to cross the ten-thousand-li Sumeru Sea and land on Demon Island.

Demon Island was, naturally, the second stage.

The top three thousand from the first stage could proceed to the second, where they would hunt Desolate Beasts on Demon Island to earn points while making their way to the island’s center.

The first one thousand people to reach the center of Demon Island with the highest point rankings would enter the third and final stage.

"As for what lies at the center of Demon Island, I’ll keep that a secret for now! In short, the top one hundred participants will all receive handsome rewards, and the top ten, in particular, will get an extra surprise!" Xiahuang Shang said.

"A surprise? Fifth Prince, what kind of surprise is it?"

the crowd asked eagerly.

Xiahuang Shang laughed. "Since I called it a surprise, I’m obviously not going to reveal it! Alright, everyone, rest up for a bit. The search for mounts will begin shortly, and this will affect your results later on!"

"Alright!"

"Damn it, with so many Desolate Beasts, I have to find a fast one!"

"That Flood Dragon..."

"Shit, that Flood Dragon could kill you with a single tail whip..."

The crowd buzzed with discussion, clearly excited and thrilled.

Hong Yu narrowed his eyes, quietly regulating his breathing while pondering what kind of Desolate Beast he should look for as a mount.

Sensing several cold gazes fixed on him, he followed the feeling and turned to see Zhao Wushuang in the crowd.

Zhao Wushuang slowly raised a hand and drew a line across his neck. "Brat, you’re dead!"

Hong Yu snorted coldly but didn’t respond.

As he turned away, he noticed Zhang Weilong and Zhang Weihu also glaring at him with ill intent.

Xiahuang Dun was there too, leading a group of experts and watching him with a mocking smile.

Hong Yu felt a headache coming on. ’Damn, how did I manage to provoke so many people?’

Seeing his troubled expression, Young Master Yeban, who was standing nearby, couldn’t help but rub his nose. He nudged Feng Xue Xin and muttered, "You think Hong Yu was a jinx in his past life? How does he attract so much hatred everywhere he goes?"

He could never forget what happened in the Profound Ice Secret Realm.

Hong Yu had practically single-handedly drawn the pursuit and siege of several thousand experts from the Blood Demon Palace and other factions!

Feng Xue Xin’s eye twitched. He put on a thoughtful expression and replied with even more sincerity, "I think so too."

A dark line formed on Hong Yu’s forehead. "Hey, that’s enough, you two!"

"Huh? Oh, hey, the weather’s nice today!"

"Right, right! Look how round the moon is!"

The two went back and forth.

Hong Yu was speechless.

...

"Time’s up, everyone. In a moment, I will summon five thousand Desolate Beasts from the depths of the sea. There will only be five thousand. Scramble for them, and as soon as you subdue a mount, head for Demon Island!"

the powerful member of the Imperial Family stated faintly.

His majestic voice carried an authority that could not be questioned.

All the experts tensed up instantly, circulating their Profound Skills and pushing their auras to the limit, awaiting the appearance of the Desolate Beasts from the sea.

BUZZ!

The Battle Halberd in the Imperial Family expert’s hand erupted with a light as brilliant as the blazing sun.

The radiance was dazzling and incomparably brilliant.

The entire Sumeru Sea rumbled as waves churned and the water surged.

One by one, the figures of Desolate Beasts gradually emerged from the water.

About ten minutes later, five thousand Ocean Wilderness Beasts had risen from the seabed to the surface.

Among them were ferocious Deep Sea Demon Sharks, enormous Ocean Profound Turtles, and Azure Sea Horses...

All sorts of Desolate Beasts thrashed about on the ocean’s surface.

ROAR! ROAR! ROAR!

A stampede of a thousand beasts roared in unison.

However, each Desolate Beast seemed to be bound by an invisible force, unable to move on the ocean’s surface. They could only let out low, extremely agitated growls.

This expert was merely standing there quietly.

Yet he could restrain several thousand powerful Desolate Beasts at once. One could only imagine how powerful he was!

"Run, my children!"

the expert let out a low growl.

The golden light binding the beasts quietly dissipated. The thousands of Desolate Beasts, now free, charged off in all directions.

They ran wildly, trying to escape.

"Charge!"

"Hahaha, this Deep Sea Demon Shark is mine!"

"This Ocean Profound Turtle is mine! Its speed is actually pretty fast..."

Tens of thousands of experts shot forward at once, chasing after the Desolate Beasts.

Feng Xue Xin laughed heartily. "I’m off!"

Young Master Yeban’s eyes lit up. "That undersea Sub-dragon is mine!"

Hong Yu curled his lip. "Isn’t that just because undersea Sub-dragons like to collect Treasure?"

Young Master Yeban stumbled and shot Hong Yu a fierce glare. "Shit! Am I really that greedy?"

"Hahaha..."

Hong Yu laughed without answering. His Divine Demon Wings tore through the void as he charged toward a Deep Sea Demon Whale that was moving with incredible speed, cutting through the wind and waves.

He was just about to catch up to the Deep Sea Demon Whale.

Just then, a cold, sharp light suddenly shot out from the side.

The light was blindingly fast.

Fortunately, Hong Yu dodged in time, or he would have been disemboweled. A drop of cold sweat trickled down his forehead. He turned to see Zhao Wushuang staring at him coldly. "This one’s mine!"

"Hmph! We’ll see who gets it first!"

Hong Yu snorted.

He had just started to move when another attack washed over him from the other side.

The one who attacked this time was Zhang Weilong.

He held a terrifying longbow and fired a golden Arrow straight at Hong Yu.

"Damn it!"

Hong Yu swung his arm violently, shattering the golden Arrow with a single palm strike.

"Hahaha, Zhang Weilong, thanks a lot!" Zhao Wushuang’s triumphant voice came from behind.

Hong Yu turned to find that the Deep Sea Demon Whale had already been subdued by Zhao Wushuang, who was now riding it through the wind and waves.

"Bastard..."

Hong Yu was furious.

By now, Zhang Weilong had already turned and left, charging toward another fast Desolate Beast, a Thorn Swordfish.

Just as Hong Yu was about to act, another person rushed out, launching an equally sharp attack at him.

Hong Yu’s heart spirit jolted.

Because of that delay, Zhang Weilong had already claimed the Thorn Swordfish.

The attacker was none other than Xiahuang Dun.

It was as if they had planned it all along, constantly interfering with Hong Yu and distracting him.

This helped other experts claim the Desolate Beasts.

"These bastards."

Hong Yu clenched his teeth, his anger uncontrollable.

He never imagined they would resort to such shameless tactics.

But five thousand Desolate Beasts were far too few for tens of thousands of people. In a short time, more than half of the beasts had already been taken.

’This won’t do. If I’m delayed any longer, I might not be able to find a single beast and will be eliminated right away,’ Hong Yu thought.

"Hahaha, Hong Yu, we’re leaving now!"

"Tsk, tsk. You poor thing. I bet you won’t be able to find a beast!"

"How pathetic!"

Zhao Wushuang and the other experts were already riding their Desolate Beasts, watching Hong Yu with triumphant expressions.

They circled around Hong Yu on their mounts, looking utterly smug.

Hong Yu looked around, his expression changing slightly.

Of the five thousand Desolate Beasts on the Sumeru Sea, fewer than a thousand remained. At this rate, there wouldn’t be a single one left in a dozen breaths.

Hong Yu felt a surge of anxiety.

Aboard the Yellow Heaven Battleship, Venerable Xiahuang said, "Hehe, Fifth Brother, it looks like your friend is going to fail in the very first stage."

"Hmph. It’s not over yet. Who can say for sure?" Xiahuang Shang retorted.

Bai Luoxue said scornfully, "There are only a hundred or so beasts left, and none of them are fast. Do you really think Hong Yu still has a chance?"

"Hmph!"

Xiahuang Shang snorted and said no more, but inwardly, he was also extremely anxious.

「On the Sumeru Sea.」

Hong Yu’s brow furrowed. He scanned his surroundings; the remaining Desolate Beasts were all the dregs of the lot, none of them skilled in speed.

He watched as only a dozen or so Desolate Beasts were left.

Suddenly, Hong Yu’s eyes lit up...

"Is that...?"