The rumors grew more and more exaggerated.
Some said Mysterious Abyss Emperor was a Primordial Black Tortoise who had fallen asleep in Abyss before the Beast Tribulation.
Others claimed Mysterious Abyss Emperor was the incarnation of Northern Water Fortune and had long surpassed the Great Luo.
There were even claims that Mysterious Abyss Emperor was already half a step into sainthood, and that the Seclusion Realm was the supreme realm beneath a Saint.
Some even swore that after Blackwater Dragon King saw Mysterious Abyss Emperor's true form with his own eyes, he had been so terrified that he immediately withdrew his army.
If Blackwater Dragon King heard that, he would probably cough up another mouthful of dragon blood in rage.
He had not even seen Lu Chen's true form.
But that was precisely what made rumors so frightening.
The fewer people who had seen it, the more mysterious it seemed.
And the more mysterious it seemed, the more outrageous people dared to make their guesses.
In just a few hundred years, the name Mysterious Abyss Emperor had spread among Water Clan large and small throughout the Northern Sea.
Abyss, meanwhile, had gone from a vague legend of refuge to a path of survival in the eyes of countless weak clans.
Outside Dragon-Suppressing Pass.
Small clans arrived one after another.
Some presented spiritual materials.
Some offered up their clans' inheritances.
Others merely kowtowed from afar, not daring to request entry.
Because they too had heard the rules of the Book of Cause and Effect.
Abyss accepted people, but it did not accept just anyone.
Those burdened with evil karma could not enter Abyss.
Once that rule spread, many weak clans of the Northern Sea felt even more at ease.
Rules had never been what they feared.
What they feared was powerful beings with no rules at all.
As long as Abyss's rules could protect them, they were willing to obey them.
Inner Realm of the Abyss.
Lan Shuang had been so busy lately that she scarcely had time to stop.
After the battle at Dragon-Suppressing Pass, Abyss's prestige had soared.
Clans from outside continually sent letters requesting an audience.
The clans within the Inner Realm were also greatly encouraged by their victory in battle.
The workload of every office suddenly multiplied several times over.
The Bureau of Calamity Avoidance had to examine the new clans.
The Bureau of Cause and Effect had to record merits and faults.
The Bureau of Realm Patrol had to expand its patrol range.
The Spirit Field Office had to arrange new spirit veins.
The Treasury Bureau had to inventory the contributions from every clan.
The Realm Guard, in particular, faced its second expansion.
Seizing the opportunity, Han Jue proposed expanding the Realm Guard from eight hundred members to three thousand.
As soon as the proposal was made, discussion erupted throughout Abyss.
Some thought it was too soon.
Others believed the timing was perfect.
In the end, Lan Shuang did not make the decision immediately, instead submitting the matter to Lu Chen.
After hearing it, Lu Chen's first reaction was to refuse.
Three thousand Realm Guards?
That was starting to sound more and more like an army.
But Han Jue's reasoning was sound as well.
With more clans in Abyss, the outer city expanding, and Dragon-Suppressing Pass having just endured a battle, the original eight hundred Realm Guards truly were not enough.
Moreover, the Realm Guard was responsible for enforcing rules, patrolling, rescue operations, and escorting new clans into the realm.
If they lacked manpower, trouble would break out sooner or later.
After considering it, Lu Chen could only add one restriction.
"The Realm Guard may expand."
"But they must not leave Abyss to wage war."
"They must not provoke the three clans in Abyss's name."
"They must not pursue and kill external enemies without authorization."
Lan Shuang immediately understood.
"Rest assured, Emperor. The Realm Guard protects the realm; it does not wage conquest."
Han Jue's expression turned solemn after hearing this.
"Protect the realm, not conquer."
"That is the true Abyss Guardian Team."
Lu Chen was very satisfied.
That finally sounded somewhat normal.
Yet Lan Shuang immediately had those words carved before the gates of the Realm Guard camp.
Every new member of the Realm Guard had to swear an oath before the stone monument.
Abyss would not fight unjust wars.
Abyss would not kill the innocent.
Abyss would not fear invading enemies.
Abyss would only protect the living beings of Abyss.
When Lu Chen found out, his feelings were somewhat complicated.
Though they had made it excessively formal again, the content was at least steady enough.
So he could not be bothered to stop them.
The benefits of the battle at Dragon-Suppressing Pass gradually became apparent as well.
After absorbing the aftermath of the battle, the Black Tortoise Sea-Calming Formation's power increased considerably.
The Book of Cause and Effect had witnessed the slaughter karma of three thousand dragon soldiers and accumulated quite a bit of cause-and-effect law.
After the Abyssal Womb Membrane absorbed part of the Blackwater Law spilling from the Blackwater Dragon Pearl, its boundaries became even tougher.
The Northern Dark Spirit Veins emerged one after another as well.
In just a few hundred years, the spiritual energy density within Inner Realm of the Abyss increased by thirty percent.
Some cultivators who had been stuck at bottlenecks broke through one after another.
Powerful figures from the Ice-Scaled Tribe, Cold Whale Tribe, Mystic Clam Tribe, and Sea Spirit Clan all advanced.
With the feedback from the Book of Cause and Effect, Lan Shuang's cultivation steadily entered the Mid-Stage Golden Immortal realm.
As for Han Jue, after taking Taiyi pressure head-on during the battle at Dragon-Suppressing Pass, his aura became even sharper once his injuries healed.
Watching these changes, Lu Chen suddenly realized something.
The more he tried to avoid trouble, the stronger Abyss became because of it.
But once it grew stronger, it attracted even greater trouble.
Wasn't that a vicious cycle?
"Maybe I should just seal the gates?"
Lu Chen seriously considered the matter.
But Abyss was no longer a deserted island.
There were tens of thousands of living beings here.
And more and more small clans were on their way.
If he sealed Abyss off completely, those clans outside would likely suffer grievous casualties.
Besides, the system had continually awarded him rewards for providing shelter.
That showed that taking in weak clans truly strengthened the foundation of his calamity avoidance.
Lu Chen ultimately reached a conclusion.
He could accept them.
But they had to be strictly screened.
The Book of Cause and Effect had to keep growing stronger.
Dragon-Suppressing Pass had to keep being reinforced.
Abyss should maintain a defensive posture at all times.
It absolutely could not take the initiative to attack.
As long as it did not provoke trouble first, there would always be a little less trouble.
The moment Lu Chen told Lan Shuang this conclusion, she immediately convened a Abyss council.
She summarized the Emperor's decree in four words.
"Uphold righteousness, avoid calamity."
The leaders of every clan turned solemn upon hearing it.
Lan Shuang explained, "To uphold righteousness is to uphold cause and effect, uphold the rules, and uphold Abyss's righteousness."
"To avoid calamity is to avoid the Great Tribulation of the three clans, avoid needless slaughter, and avoid the reckoning of the Heavenly Dao."
"These words from the Emperor are Abyss's foundation for the next ten thousand years."
Everyone kowtowed in unison.
"We shall obey the Emperor's decree!"
After Lu Chen heard this, he remained silent for a long time.
He always felt that Lan Shuang's summary sounded more profound than what he had said himself.
Forget it.
As long as the direction was right, that was enough.
Outside Dragon-Suppressing Pass.
A vast procession slowly moved through Blackwater.
The procession traveled very slowly.
Because it contained many elderly, weak, young, and small members.
They bore heavy tortoise shells on their backs, with short, stout limbs and steady auras.
They were the Black-Shelled Turtle Tribe of Northern Sea Black Armor Ridge.
At their head stood an old man leaning on a dark-black cane.
He was not tall, but he carried an enormous tortoise shell behind him, covered in patterns etched by time.
With every step he took, the seafloor trembled faintly.
This man was the patriarch of the Black-Shelled Turtle Tribe, Ancestor Xuan Jia.
Early-Stage Great Luo Golden Immortal.
The Black-Shelled Turtle Tribe had originally lived at Blackshell Ridge in the Northern Sea.
They disliked conflict and excelled at defense and formations. In the past, they had survived by relying on the Dragon Clan.
But as the Dragon-Han Cataclysm intensified, the Dragon Clan's conscription grew increasingly harsh.
Blackwater Dragon Palace demanded that the Black-Shelled Turtle Tribe offer up its young turtles, so their innate tortoise shells could be forged into Sea-Suppression Armor.
That order thoroughly drove Ancestor Xuan Jia to rebellion.
He could pay spiritual mines to the Dragon Clan.
He could repair water veins for the Dragon Clan.
He could even send warriors from his tribe to serve as laborers on the battlefield.
But surrendering young turtles to forge armor had crossed the Black-Shelled Turtle Tribe's bottom line.
So he led his entire tribe away from Blackshell Ridge.
After hearing that Abyss possessed a supreme Black Tortoise, and that even Blackwater Dragon King had been driven back by its Dharma body, Ancestor Xuan Jia scarcely hesitated before leading his clansmen directly toward Dragon-Suppressing Pass.
At Dragon-Suppressing Pass.
Ao Lie immediately sensed Ancestor Xuan Jia's aura.
His dragon eyes narrowed slightly.
"Great Luo Golden Immortal."
Han Jue stood beside him, battle intent rising in his eyes.
"Strong?"
Ao Lie replied evenly, "The Black-Shelled Turtle Tribe's ancestor possesses extremely powerful defenses."
"Blackwater Dragon Palace once wanted to subdue him as a general, but he always refused."
"I never expected that he would come to Abyss as well."
Han Jue smiled.
"It seems Abyss is becoming more and more lively."
Ao Lie glanced at him.
"For the Dragon Clan, that is hardly a good thing."
Han Jue gripped his spear.
"For Abyss, it is."
Ao Lie did not refute him.
After Ancestor Xuan Jia arrived outside Dragon-Suppressing Pass, he neither forced his way in nor put on airs as a Great Luo.
He directly led his entire clan to kneel outside the pass.
His voice was aged, yet exceptionally resolute.
"The Black-Shelled Turtle Tribe requests an audience with the Turtle Clan's ancestor."
"My clan is willing to enter Abyss and guard the Mysterious Abyss Emperor's dojo for generations."
The message was sent into the depths of Abyss.
Lu Chen fell silent once again.
Ancestor?
He really was not one.
But at that moment, the system's voice also rang out.
"Detected the Black-Shelled Turtle Tribe's entire clan seeking to pledge allegiance. Please choose, Host."