Late at night.
Moonlight flowed into the waves, scattering like crushed silver upon the shore.
The silent beach was alive only with the sound of crashing tides, fierce and unrelenting, devoid of any other signs of life. The entire world seemed to have fallen into a deep slumber.
In this desolate hour.
Ao Budong stood rigidly on the sand, clad in plain robes, clutching a pile of gift boxes in his hands. Gone was the usual arrogance of the Dragon Emperor—replaced only by a humble, anxious dread.
He glanced around repeatedly, yet no movement caught his eye.
But there was not a trace of impatience or resentment in him. Instead, his expression grew ever more deferential, his breaths steadying his nerves as he waited with obedient patience.
Finally.
A ripple tore through the void before him, and an old man leaning on a cane stepped out slowly.
The moment Ao Budong laid eyes on that weathered, aged face, it was as if he had seen salvation. He dropped to his knees with a thud!
"Lord Crab Emperor! Lord Crab Emperor, save me!"
The Crab Emperor looked down with cold, turbid eyes, unmoved.
Even as Ao Budong kowtowed relentlessly, the old man remained indifferent, as if mercy had never been in his nature. That he had appeared at all in such delicate times was already a rare concession.
His desperate kowtowing went unanswered—his fervor met with cold rejection!
In the past.
Ao Budong would have risen in fury, vowing vengeance!
But today.
The Emperor of the Heavenly Dragon-Mermaid Clan was utterly humbled, his forehead never leaving the sand, his pleas desperate, his forced smile trembling as he presented gift after gift!
"Lord Crab Emperor! I know you favor fine wine—this is a vintage aged a hundred thousand years from my clan’s cellars!"
"And these are my treasured Soul-Refining Fruits!"
"Yes, yes! And the ancient Deep-Sea Vines left by my ancestors! And—!"
In his frantic efforts, Ao Budong unpacked the gifts with utmost flattery.
Yet no matter how he groveled, how he forced his strained smile, how he piled rare treasures upon the sand—the Crab Emperor remained unmoved, not a flicker of interest in his gaze.
Long moments of effort yielded nothing.
Ao Budong’s expression froze, teetering on the edge of collapse.
Tears of humiliation welled in his eyes as he gritted his teeth and kowtowed again, his voice breaking with sobs!
"Lord Crab Emperor…!"
"I—I am also of the sea clans! Though distant, we are still kin! I do not know what power I have offended, but I know my Heavenly Dragon-Mermaid Clan faces calamity!"
"To have fallen so low is my own fault, but the millions of my people must not perish! I beg you, show mercy!"
"Lord Crab Emperor! For the sake of our shared blood, point me to a path of survival! If even a fraction of my clan can be spared, I would die ten thousand deaths in gratitude!"
Even as his face pressed into the filthy sand, Ao Budong kowtowed like a madman.
In mere moments.
The Dragon Emperor’s face was streaked with blood and tears, his desperation laid bare!
At last.
The Crab Emperor sighed deeply.
"Ah…"
"Enough."
"As fellow sea kin, I cannot stand idly by."
Ao Budong’s head snapped up in joy, scrambling forward on his knees!
"Thank you, my lord! Thank you for your mercy!"
But before his relief could bloom.
The Crab Emperor raised a frail hand, his cold demeanor overshadowing any pity.
"Hold your gratitude."
"Though I am willing to advise you, that is all. This matter is far beyond my reach. Even I dare not defy that lord’s will. Whether your clan lives or dies depends solely on your own actions!"
Ao Budong shuddered violently, his pupils trembling!
That lord…
For the Crab Emperor to speak such a title—unthinkable!
Now hearing it firsthand.
Though his suspicions were confirmed—that the Black Isle indeed housed a terrifying presence—Ao Budong was still struck with awe. What manner of being could command such fear from even the Crab Emperor?
Suddenly.
The Dragon Emperor, who had ruled the East Sea for millennia, felt like a naive child, his authority and wisdom utterly laughable in the face of such power.
He took several deep breaths before daring to speak again, his voice quivering.
"Y-yes, of course! I would never presume to trouble you further, Lord Crab Emperor."
"But… I truly do not know what transgression brought this upon us. Please, grant me but a hint, so I may face my fate with clarity…"
Seeing Ao Budong’s genuine remorse and terror, the Crab Emperor hesitated before relenting.
"All this… is simply fate."
"Your son trespassed upon the Black Isle, provoking a certain lord into action. When we learned of his presence, none of us dared intervene. Before him, even the three of us are but ants."
Ao Budong nodded blankly, still processing.
"A skeletal figure did strike, but my son committed no offense! How have we wronged this lord—?"
The Crab Emperor looked down with sheer exasperation.
"Your son invaded the Black Isle, challenging an outsider. Even in defeat, he lacked the sense to realize that outsider was the master of the Skeletal Lord. The Skeletal Lord’s punishment was justified—how can you claim no offense?"
"You… have wasted millennia as Dragon Emperor!"
Holy—
Ao Budong’s legs gave way, nearly collapsing on the spot!
He had guessed the Skeletal Lord’s power was beyond his clan’s reach, which was why he had swallowed his pride and accepted the humiliation without retaliation…
Never had he imagined.
That such a monstrous being was merely another’s subordinate!
So.
They had offended that lord’s master from the very beginning—this was the truth of it!
What kind of horror must that master be?!
Unfathomable!
Now that the truth was laid bare, Ao Budong’s mind reeled. The disaster looming over them was worse than he had feared—annihilation was at their doorstep.
That supreme being could wipe out the entire sea clans without lifting a finger!
Before such power, he felt smaller than a grain of sand.
"This—this!"
Ao Budong kowtowed frantically again, uncaring of the grime caking his forehead!
"Lord Crab Emperor, save us!"
"I never knew such a supreme being resided on the Black Isle! Had I known, I would never have dared disrespect it!"
"Please, I beg you—what must I do…?"
Foolish as he was, his attitude was at least acceptable.
The Crab Emperor sighed once more.
"Ah."
"Before Lord Yi and the Skeletal Lord, I am nothing. How could I dare dictate anything?"
"From now on, you must act according to Lord Yi’s will. Your fate rests solely on his mood."
"I have said all I can, out of kinship. The rest is up to you—heed my words!"
With that final warning, the Crab Emperor’s figure dissolved into the night.
Ao Budong remained frozen, his shock lingering as he bowed repeatedly.
"Yes, yes! I shall obey Lord Yi’s will in all things!"
Only after long silence did he dare look up, realizing the Crab Emperor had truly left. He hastily pulled out a jade slip, roaring into it as he interrogated Ao Chang, demanding every detail of the past events be laid bare!
Upon asking, he learned that the root of it all was over a few human women. Over such a trivial matter, they had provoked a terrifying entity—what wretched luck!
Not long after,
Dragon Emperor Ao Budong summoned all the high-ranking members of the East Sea Dragon-Mermaid Clan.
In the silent great hall, gasps of shock filled the air. Ao Chang, the clan's most talented prodigy and top young warrior, was immediately bound and restrained on the spot.
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