Self-Sufficiency, Abundant Living

The interception and pursuit at Vast Sea City were merely the beginning of a long and hopeless ordeal.

Tang San and his group fled east in panic from the westernmost port of the continent. Sleeping rough and eating whatever they could find, they traveled day and night, trying to make their way through coastal towns in search of a ship that could carry them across the sea to the legendary Sea God Island.

Yet throughout the entire journey, every stretch of coastline had been completely sealed off.

Whenever they reached a port, what greeted them was never the ship they hoped for, but the icy blades and unyielding killing intent of Sea Soul Masters.

In just a few days, the entire vast coastline of the Douluo Continent had changed completely.

No one knew when it had begun, but the hostility and rejection Sea Soul Masters who had lived in the oceans for generations felt toward land Soul Masters had risen to an unprecedented peak.

All maritime territories had been sealed, and every port was under full lockdown.

In the eyes of all Sea Soul Masters, land Soul Masters were nothing but treacherous, greedy, despicable people. They would never permit a single land Soul Master to set foot in the sea, nor would they allow any room for compromise.

The sea blocked the road ahead, while pursuers pressed close behind.

Driven into a corner, Tang San and the others could only huddle in the desolate mountains less than half a day's journey from Eastsea City.

A bleak wind howled through the mountains, and the forest lay steeped in deathly silence. They did not even dare light a campfire, afraid that a wisp of smoke might expose their whereabouts and bring endless pursuit. A pile of dry branches lay quietly on the ground, but no one dared set it alight. Only bone-piercing cold wrapped around them.

Days of fleeing, repeated battles and defeats, and the torment of hunger had utterly worn down everyone's spirits.

"Third Brother, aren't you the future Sea God? Shouldn't they respect you?"

Ma Hongjun could not help asking. He had lost an entire round of weight by now. His once plump cheeks had sunk deeply inward, and his formerly well-fed figure was gone.

"Who knows!" Tang San gritted his teeth and looked to the side.

Dai Mubai's old shoulder wound had been pulled open several times, and crimson blood had soaked through his clothes. Zhu Zhuqing crouched before him, deft yet gentle as she changed the gauze and rebandaged him. Her brows and eyes were filled with exhaustion and worry.

The entire group was listless, battered and scarred by their hopeless situation.

"Third Brother..." Ma Hongjun slumped on the ground, his voice hoarse and weak, heavy with exhaustion and confusion. "When will we finally be able to go to sea? When will we reach Sea God Island?"

The forest fell silent. No one answered.

Tang San's Mysterious Heaven Skill circulated slowly through his meridians, healing the hidden injuries left by days of frantic flight. Yet his expression was worse than anyone else's, even those who were injured.

The Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud rested in his arms. It was the key to reaching Sea God Island and beginning the Sea God's Nine Trials.

But now, the sea was sealed off, and they could not take a single step into it.

If they could not go to sea, they could not reach Sea God Island.

If they could not reach Sea God Island, they could not begin the Divine Examination or inherit the Sea God's divine position.

Without ascending to godhood, he would never possess enough power to shake the Spirit Hall that dominated the continent.

Meanwhile, Bibi Dong was still attempting the Yin-Yang Complementary Soul Core. That stingy Rakshasa God had only given her affinity, so she could only work on her second Martial Soul. Her sights were already set on the Far North.

Within the Heavenly Screen, Yin Hongye leaned against the armrest of a sofa, clearly unaware of Tang San's current plight.

Of course, even if he knew, so what?

He probably would not feel much either. At most, he would say, "You're already like this, so why aren't you dead yet?"

Just then, Mu Hongchen pushed open the door and entered. He held a soul-tool tablet in his hand, its screen casting light across his face. It was impossible to tell whether his expression was excitement or a headache.

"Found it. The Silver Dragon's Dragon Pill is in Shrek Academy."

Yin Hongye paused in the middle of turning a page, clicked his tongue, and said, "So that's where it is."

Qian Renxue was still puzzled. Wasn't this Dragon Pill supposed to be something from legend? Even she had only read about it in ancient records.

Mu Hongchen tossed the tablet onto the table, sank into the chair opposite it, and rubbed his brow. "Shrek Academy must have put it inside the Sea God Pavilion. The defenses there are definitely strong."

"That place? Its security isn't even on the same level as the Federation Laboratory. You can just walk in if you want." Yin Hongye's voice was calm. He did not care about the Sea God Pavilion's security in the slightest.

The security at those two places could compare to the Thirteenth District.

"Are those two even the same level?" Mu Hongchen was speechless. He quietly hacked into Shrek Academy's internal network.

Then he posted a close-up photo of Cai Yue'er getting slapped several times, along with a meme of Long Yeyue running away.

"They look about the same." Yin Hongye smiled. "But Na'er will still have to obtain the Dragon Pill herself."

Qian Renxue, who had been sitting quietly nearby, frowned slightly and interjected at the right moment. "Obtain it herself? If she waits until she cultivates to Limit Douluo before retrieving the Dragon Pill, her origin will already be complete by then. Will this Dragon Pill still be of any use to her?"

"No rush." Yin Hongye smiled deeply, his tone carrying the ease of someone who saw through everything. "Work for your own food and clothing. If all else fails, just dig a tunnel and sneak in."

"When I was six, I was already earning bounties myself. Na'er should be fine too."

Hearing that, Mu Hongchen added, "Exactly. I could already support myself at eight. Making money online is quick."

One was, put nicely, a bounty hunter. The other was, put nicely, a cybersecurity programmer.

"Wait, aren't you both Federation citizens?" Qian Renxue could not help asking.

"What decent person works for someone else?" Yin Hongye said.

"Yeah. Rather than wrong yourself, it is better to make things difficult for others," Mu Hongchen replied.

Yin Hongye lifted his eyes toward Shrek Academy and added indifferently to Qian Renxue, "You don't seriously think Shrek Academy and the Golden Ancient Tree are completely united, do you? You really can get in."

"Wait, are you saying the Golden Ancient Tree has its own consciousness? Isn't it a soul beast?" Qian Renxue asked in surprise.

"That's right, it has its own consciousness. But it isn't a soul beast. The trunk of the Golden Ancient Tree has been hollowed out by people. Do you think it likes humans that much?" Yin Hongye found this deeply incomprehensible. No matter how kind it was, surely it could not be kind to this extent.

If it had been him, the moment Shrek Academy's elders entered the Sea God Pavilion, it would have been no different from entering a prison: they could enter, but never leave.

And they even constructed it in a way that supposedly did not affect the tree's growth...

That so-called exquisite construction that did not affect the tree's growth might look ingenious and masterfully crafted to outsiders, but to the ancient tree itself, it was no different from the torture of being slowly carved apart year after year.

Qian Renxue was quick-witted and immediately grasped the key point. Her expression turned slightly grave. "You mean the Golden Ancient Tree might even actively block Shrek's own people's spiritual perception? Guard against those within while secretly letting outsiders through?"

"Not entirely." A teasing smile curled Yin Hongye's lips, his eyes clear and insightful as though he had long seen through the truth. "If it wants to, no one can get in. So we only need to avoid Yun Ming."

"As long as we can get into the Golden Ancient Tree, that's enough. By the way, there are quite a few good things beneath it. There are one hundred and eight rooms in total, covering environments suitable for nearly every type of Martial Soul. Every inner-court disciple gets one opportunity for Deep Meditation."

Yin Hongye smiled faintly. "Ordinary Soul Masters might not encounter Deep Meditation even once in their entire lives, yet Shrek Academy can provide it directly."

"Deep Meditation..." Qian Renxue was slightly moved upon hearing that. It was something that could only be encountered by chance.

"This cost Shrek Academy quite a lot of time to gather." Yin Hongye smiled faintly. "I remember that beneath Shrek Academy, there seems to be a place filled with dragon bones."

"Dragon bones?" Outside the Heavenly Screen, Di Tian felt anger surge up within him again.

"I remember they were called Dread Demon Dragons, a subspecies of Earth Dragon. Their direct combat strength was not particularly great, but they were a rare dragon clan with spiritual attributes." Yin Hongye continued naturally, seemingly indifferent to life and death. "There are a total of one thousand and one Dread Demon Dragon skulls. Shrek Academy spent eight hundred years collecting them all. I heard they only collected skulls from dragons that died naturally."

"One thousand and one? There aren't even three thousand Dread Demon Dragons in the entire clan, are there? Dragons have always reproduced with difficulty." Zi Ji spoke up, confirming just how difficult this was.

Eight hundred years was an extremely unreasonable number.