Chapter 63: Sudden Change!!

Chapter 63: Chapter 63: Sudden Change!!

"What’s wrong?" Dachun asked, startled by Zeng Anmin’s sudden jumpiness.

Zeng Anmin had no time for him. He took a deep breath, abruptly stood up, and said, "I’m going to find my father!" With that, he strode straight outside.

His face was completely solemn.

An Shiyi was a Clam Spirit!

Who didn’t know what a clam looked like?

King Jiang was practicing the Cultivation Demon Race’s Essence Blood Martial Dao; with those fish scales all over his body, he might as well just announce he was a fish spirit!

Furthermore, Nan had made it very clear.

[Moreover, if one uses this method to open the Heaven-opening Gate, they will also gain the Talent Power of the essence blood’s master.]

In other words, inside the city right now... there was another fish spirit!

Reaching this conclusion made Zeng Anmin’s scalp tingle with dread. As his thoughts raced, his pace quickened.

"Young Master, wait for me!" Seeing Zeng Anmin’s hurried figure, Dachun quickly chased after him.

Outside Liangjiang County City.

On the vast surface of the Great River, three merchant ships were lined up side by side. Each vessel was over a hundred feet long.

On the deck of the lead ship, two figures gazed at the river, their eyes perfectly calm.

"The Prince is still in the city. How can we be so reckless?" The man on the right, dressed in a Scholar’s robe, had a cool demeanor and a steady voice. He frowned at the burly man on his left. At this, a hint of worry surfaced on his face as he looked back at the other two giant ships. "We must not rush anything..."

The burly man on the left had rugged features. His eyebrows bristled like steel needles, and a thick, bushy beard framed his face. With a broad nose and a wide mouth, he looked truly awe-inspiring. He stared expressionlessly at the Scholar, his large hand resting lightly on the saber at his waist. He looked coldly toward the faint outline of Liangjiang County City in the distance and said, "November twentieth. If there is no word from the Prince, we attack the city immediately. This is a military order. Since Zeng Shilin forced the Prince to this point, he should have expected this day would come."

The Scholar sighed, then knitted his brows at the burly man. "And the Court..."

The burly man glanced at him indifferently, a glint of cold light flashing across his face. "Zeng Shilin colluded with the Demon Race to rebel. The Prince discovered this in advance and made early plans, planting us outside the city as an ambush. Now that we have enough evidence, he will be executed." He slowly raised his head to look at the city, a smile curling the corners of his mouth. "As the Prefect, Qi Xiande will naturally help testify for us."

Qi Xiande?

The Scholar was suddenly taken aback, but then his eyes lit up as he looked at the burly man. "Prefect Qi is also the Prince’s man?"

The burly man nodded slightly, his expression steady. "Zeng Shilin relied most heavily on Wang Deli... but if nothing unexpected happened, that bastard should already be dead. Who in the city can stop us now? Moreover..."

At this point, he looked out into the Great River, an indescribable look flashing through his eyes.

Right at that moment, a wave suddenly surged to the heavens.

SPLASH!

From the deep, dark waters of the river, a gigantic fish head emerged. The head emanated an oppressive aura. Just one of its eyes was the size of a lantern, and it stared indifferently at the people on the ship, looking incredibly eerie.

"I, General Xu Tong, greet the Demon King," the burly man said, taking a deep breath and saluting as the fish surfaced. His voice was not loud, but the bizarre, massive fish head on the water could hear him perfectly.

"Hehe." A curved grin appeared on the fish’s mouth, looking utterly terrifying amidst the landscape. It did not answer Xu Tong. Instead, it slowly turned its head above the river surface. Its lantern-like eyes looked toward the nearby Liangjiang County City, a flash of greed passing through them.

SPLASH. SPLASH. SPLASH.

Behind the massive fish head, five monsters with fish heads and human bodies popped out one after another. The five monsters respectfully followed behind the giant fish head as it moved toward Liangjiang County City. The three massive merchant ships trailed behind them, painting a profoundly bizarre picture.

The Office of the Chief Clerk was not far from Zeng Shilin’s temporary office.

It didn’t take long for Zeng Anmin to arrive outside the door. Without a second thought, he pushed it open and walked right in. "Father! There’s something else I need to tell you..." As soon as he entered the room, he saw his father glaring at him with a thoroughly gloomy expression. "Concubine Lin is here too?"

His gaze fell on Concubine Lin, who stood to the side looking worried. Mr. Qi’s face was also extremely grim. Only Hu Zi was rapidly stuffing his face with the pastries from the plate on the table. A highly oppressive atmosphere permeated the room.

"What happened?" Seeing that no one was speaking, Zeng Anmin blinked at the river clam on the floor. He noticed that An Shiyi had vanished. In her place was a river clam the size of a millstone sitting on the ground. Its enormous black shell was wide open, exposing tender flesh covered in weird slime. Had his father forced this Clam Spirit back into its original form to extract its pearl?

His father sat upright in his chair, his expression rather ugly as he said, "The Clam Race among demons possesses a talent to sacrifice themselves to seize the Heaven and Earth Spirit. This demon was a Fourth Grade Demon King with decent cultivation. By sacrificing its cultivation and life, it actually managed to seal my Confucian Cyan Qi for half an incense stick of time."

Upon hearing this, Zeng Anmin’s scalp went numb. He snapped his head up to look at his father. "Are you saying that your Vast Righteous Qi is currently sealed?!"

"Yes. For the span of half an incense stick, I cannot use my Vast Righteous Qi," his father said, a sharp glint flickering in his eyes. "The essence of the Clam Race entirely resides in the Pearl Core within their bellies. Even if they die, they can achieve nirvana through the Pearl Core, and it’s not impossible for them to reincarnate someday.

"But if they use their Pearl Core for a sacrifice, there is absolutely no possibility of reincarnation. Moreover, this demon was in the Fourth Grade Demon King realm..."

His father’s gaze fell on Zeng Anmin, his voice profound. "Tell me, what exactly is the Demon Race’s goal? Why would a Demon King willingly sacrifice everything they have, just to seal my cultivation for an incense stick of time?"

"This..." Zeng Anmin hesitated, but turbulent waves were already crashing in his heart.

A feeling swelled within him at this moment—the feeling of being completely seen through, from head to toe, right down to his underwear!

"King Jiang certainly does not have the sheer charisma to make the Demon Race submit so willingly," his father said, his gaze shifting from Zeng Anmin to the outside. His voice was incredibly profound.

Zeng Anmin subconsciously clenched his fists. He was the only one in the room who knew that his father was now infinitely close to the truth he had just guessed!

However, just as he was about to speak, an urgent shout rang out.

"Report! Governor! There... there are rebel forces attacking the city!"

Following that, chaotic footsteps clattered at the door.

Zeng Anmin looked up. A clerk rushed into the room, panting heavily, and fell to his knees with a THUD. "My Lord, three thousand armored soldiers outside the city have joined forces with the Demon Race to attack... Prefect Qi has already led men to the city gates to set up defenses."