Swamp Erosion Venerable (Seeking Follow-up Reads)

Swish!

Zhang Dong began heading toward the turbulent flow zone.

The entire sea was in constant motion, and the seawater was extremely dense—at normal flow speeds, it could annihilate most Realm Lords.

The turbulent zone was even more dangerous.

After all, even ordinary water, if fast enough, could knock a person unconscious, let alone the Illusory Light Sea.

Each drop weighed as much as a planet, and with the added ultra-high flow speed, even a Marquis-level Immortal entering would be tossed about, unable to steady themselves.

But only in the turbulent zone was the probability of producing a heavy treasure high.

After flying continuously for two years, Zhang Dong finally arrived at the turbulent zone. He wanted to use Teleportation, but worried about losing control over spatial fluctuations and ending up off course.

The Space Heartforce was, after all, not the local space laws. Even a peak King-level Immortal who had grasped part of the space laws could easily make mistakes teleporting here.

Only a Cosmic Venerable who had mastered the complete space laws dared to teleport here.

The turbulent zone of the Illusory Light Sea was very small—just ten million kilometers.

Within that ten-million-kilometer range, there were three Cosmic Venerables and one King-level Immortal scattered about.

In truth, a high-level King could stand firm in the turbulent zone, but only Invincible Kings dared to come here. Ordinary King-level limits wouldn't even consider it.

They simply couldn't get involved in battles between elementary Venerables and Invincible Kings.

"Oh?"

A strange beast that looked like a clump of mud suddenly opened its eyes and looked in Zhang Dong's direction.

Its entire body seemed coated in a layer of mud, its eyes were a hazy gray, and its surface was covered in bumps like a toad's.

Zhang Dong sensed it and looked back. Their gazes met. The mud beast didn't know who he was, glanced at him twice, then chose to ignore him.

"Swamp Erosion Venerable?" Zhang Dong recognized the mud beast. "It's him."

Swamp Erosion Venerable was the one who had assassinated Luo Feng in the Ancestral God Sect. After killing one clone, he was directly annihilated by the Five-Colored Aurora Lake.

A Venerable who could take on assassination missions like that wasn't particularly strong or high-status, because in the eyes of the clan alliance, his value wasn't as great as Luo Feng's.

Now, Swamp Erosion Venerable was merely an elementary Venerable.

The threat of Blade River King, Luo Feng during his Realm Lord period, wasn't enough to warrant a true Cosmic Overlord taking action.

The other two Cosmic Venerables and the Invincible King also glanced at Zhang Dong, but seeing he was an unfamiliar face, they paid him no mind and continued their own cultivation and waiting.

Based on past experience, the turbulent zone would produce a heavy treasure at most once every ten million years. During high-yield periods, over a dozen could appear within a million years.

Those present were either Invincible Kings or elementary Venerables, so their demand for heavy treasures was naturally high. If an Invincible King had high potential and the clan was willing to nurture him, he wouldn't lack treasures.

The fear was being like Zhenyan King—stuck as an Invincible King for too long, potential declining, and clan support dwindling.

Elementary Venerables were even poorer. Before breaking through, most were just peak Kings with hardly any treasure accumulation. They had to apply for free treasure grants from their clans.

Cultivation was slow too—advancing one level in a hundred million years was already good. Treasures had to be earned by grinding, waiting in dangerous but low-risk secret realms, and accumulating treasures over time.

Even ordinary heavy treasures, if gathered in enough quantity, could be traded for better ones.

Luo Feng's experience was impossible for others to replicate. In the universe, most strong beings had to level up honestly, grind for treasures, or become rogue cultivators if they lacked patience.

But rogue cultivators couldn't go too far. Bullying lower-level beings too often would likely get them dealt with by stronger ones.

The countless islands in the turbulent zone rotated constantly. Zhang Dong often scanned new islands as they arrived, and whenever he found a World Ring, he would collect it.

The Cosmic Venerables and Invincible Kings looked down on this. Unless an island drifted close by, they wouldn't bother picking up World Rings.

At this level, weapons purchasable with Hunyuan Units were nothing special. Even those claiming to kill anyone below a Cosmic Venerable couldn't touch an Invincible King.

Sixteen years after arriving in the turbulent zone.

An island about four thousand kilometers in diameter drifted over with the violent currents.

Zhang Dong, as usual, extended his Inner World Projection to cover it, but discovered three purple-gold treasure chests made of G-Grade Metal at the island's center.

The chests bore strange patterns and some oddly shaped writing.

"Aboriginal Relic?!" The term flashed through Zhang Dong's mind. "It's an Aboriginal Relic."

The universe was fair. Except for rare cases of extreme luck where great treasures were found in safe areas, most of the time, it would refresh treasures in dangerous zones.

This was a rule of operation.

The Primordial Universe's origin, or rather the supreme rules, hoped that the beings it nurtured would produce true super experts to protect it.

Thus, the safer a secret realm, the less likely good treasures would appear. They would drift into dangerous areas for true experts to obtain.

"Treasure chests, Aboriginal Relic!"

"These chests together might be worth trillions of Hunyuan Units. Worth considering a move."

The three Cosmic Venerables and the Invincible King all had thoughts of competing for the treasure. They disdained ordinary World Rings, but a trillion Hunyuan Units was worth acting on.

Swish!

Swamp Erosion Venerable made the first move. His massive body, like a toad, suddenly leaped with extreme speed. The mist, though like wisps of silk, struggled to restrain him.

The other two Cosmic Venerables also struck, one from the front and one from behind.

The sole Invincible King did not rush in. An Invincible King could only barely survive a fight against a low-level Venerable—truly meddling in a battle of this caliber was still beyond him.

He had to wait for the right opportunity.

"Ten thousand mixed elements, enough to buy over three kilograms of Fermo Venom." Zhang Dong's gaze burned just as fiercely.

When it was time to strike, he had to strike.

His aura was that of an Immortal. If he revealed his Special Lifeform divine body, everyone present would only take him for a Special Lifeform King.

All four powerhouses rushed toward that island at once.

And at that moment...

Rumble!!!

At the edge of the sea, endless waves surged, rolling up to millions of zhang high. The seawater began to change color, churning with gold-blue foam. Through the mist, countless beams of light refracted.

"A treasure is emerging?!" Zhang Dong had checked the records—he knew this was the precursor to a treasure's appearance.

In truth, there was no need to check. The Primordial Universe and the Cosmic Sea both followed this rule.

Whenever a treasure emerged, there was almost always a commotion. The rarer the treasure, the greater the commotion.

If it were merely a struggle over an Aboriginal Relic, the Cosmic Venerables might not take it too seriously. But with such a disturbance, the treasure about to appear was bound to be extraordinary.

"The real bloodshed is coming." Swamp Erosion Venerable said coldly.

PS: Thanks to everyone for following, voting, and tipping.