C438 The Assassin

Yu Yuan was nursing a headache.

Unable to reach the Chaos Roc, he was clueless about the whereabouts of the Evil Sect's ultimate treasure.

The Chaos Roc had mentioned that the Evil Cauldron was inside a cave, but failed to provide an exact location.

"We need to search and find it quickly!"

He was acutely aware that lingering in the underwater cave was not an option.

The longer the people outside remained stationary, the greater the risk of being located by the Blood Sacrificial Altar.

Moreover, for the sake of their own survival, they likely wouldn't be keen on waiting for him indefinitely.

Chi Nandou, in particular, possessing the glass bottle and a rare treasure from the Fiend Sect, felt confident enough to break through the "Dark Blue Curtain" without his help.

Empowered by a Soul Accumulating Pill, Lau Ying had regained her peak condition and mastered the Fallen Star Eyes to their fullest extent, giving her a chance to penetrate the "Dark Blue Curtain" as well.

While Lau Ying might be inclined to wait a bit longer, the others probably wouldn't share her patience.

With this in mind, he made a swift decision to stop wasting time glancing back at the Chaos Roc or concerning himself with the survivors from the major sects within the Fallen Star Eyes and the glass bottle.

He delved deeper into the mysterious depths of the cave.

One by one, the remains of creatures of unknown origins and varying shapes emerged before him.

These relics, marked by the passage of time, cast a somber mood over their surroundings.

"Crack!"

His foot landed on the tail of a silver-white lizard, measuring seven to eight zhang in length, snapping it with a crisp sound.

"Of no value," Yu Yuan mumbled to himself as he pressed on.

Out of nowhere, a burst of dark light surged from the underbelly of a crocodile he had just passed.

Boom!

The blast propelled Yu Yuan forward by more than ten meters, his back searing with pain, his spine nearly fracturing from the impact.

He whirled around, peering into the gloom of the cave.

Within the Yellow Court Little World, he forcefully channeled the refined spiritual energy, causing it to surge through his body's meridians and acupoints.

The light danced around him, and Yu Yuan's expression darkened as he uttered a cold snort, "Who's there?"

The fact that the ambush hadn't killed him outright suggested that his attacker's combat prowess wasn't so fearsome as to drive him to despair.

The presence of living beings in the cave didn't scare him; it thrilled him instead.

"He's actually alive."

A figure struggled from beneath the belly of a massive crocodile, shoving aside the layers of wrinkled skin and flesh that had been heaped upon him, and emerged from below, "You're a practitioner too? Which sect do you hail from? And how did you sneak in here?"

A boy, no more than fourteen or fifteen, eyed him with a chilly gaze.

His skin was dark, his muscles well-defined, and his eyes gleamed with an eagerness for battle, "Are you with the Demon Palace, one of those who descended into the sea?"

The boy's attire was crafted from an exotic fish skin, clinging tightly to most of his form.

He wore a hostile look, with only a Mustard Seed Bracelet adorning his wrist, devoid of any other possessions.

"Who are you?" Yu Yuan asked, his brow furrowed.

"I belong to the Devil Palace," the boy huffed, "Only the most influential within the Devil Palace and Demon Palace are privy to this place! I'm aware of every individual from the first group that entered from the Demon Palace, and you weren't among them! Unless, of course, you were sent by the Demon Palace later on." His demeanor left no doubt in his mind that Yu Yuan was with the Demon Palace.

"Devil Palace..." Yu Yuan was taken aback, scrutinizing the boy before responding, "Why haven't you considered that I might be from the Devil Palace, part of the second wave of entrants?"

"Heixun wouldn't dare deceive me!"

The boy's posture was one of sheer arrogance, "This so-called trial in the Ember Waters is trivial, nothing more than a formality. Moreover, I descended to the seabed before the rest! In fact, I've been cultivating at the bottom of the Ember Waters for quite some time. The Devil Palace, Demon Palace, and the Red Devil Sect—the three major upper sects—their formidable candidates have all been disclosed to me by Heixun."

"You've been at the seabed already?" Yu Yuan exclaimed, surprised.

The boy's demeanor was unabashedly haughty, referring to the Devil Palace's guardian in these parts, Heixun, without the customary honorific 'Master'.

He even claimed that not even Heixun would dare to keep secrets from him...

Moreover, he had long since begun his cultivation in the Ember Waters, undoubtedly with Heixun's permission, perhaps even under his protection.

He knew full well that this place was one of the three great enigmas.

Connecting the dots, Yu Yuan realized that the young man claiming to hail from the Devil Palace in the northern Quietus Continent must be someone of extraordinary prestige.

He either possessed supreme talent for cultivation,

Or he was born into unparalleled nobility, much like Tang Can.

"Enough with the chatter. Where do you come from?" the youth snapped, clearly impatient. "You survived my ambush; consider yourself lucky. I'll let you keep your miserable life! Now that you're here, spill it—what's the situation outside?"

Mid-sentence, he emerged fully from the underbelly of the massive crocodile.

He glanced outside the cave, only to be struck with disbelief. "The Chaos Roc? Is that really the Chaos Roc? It's broken its chains and come out too?"

"Do you recognize the Chaos Roc?" Yu Yuan inquired.

"Of course!" the youth retorted angrily. "Besides this place, the Chaos Roc is at the bottom of the Ember Waters, along with the sealed Tears of Blue Devil. Those cursed Tears of Blue Devil!"

His face turned ghostly pale as he mentioned the Tears of Blue Devil, cursing under his breath, "If it weren't for those damn Tears, I wouldn't be hiding out here to avoid calamity."

It was clear now.

Yu Yuan felt a sense of calm, confident that the young man before him was indeed a key figure from the Devil Palace.

The youth was privy to all three of the sea's hidden secrets, and he was well aware that the Tears of Blue Devil had broken free. Fearing its pursuit, he had taken refuge here.

"Is that the Fallen Star Eyes? And the Fiend Sect's Glass Bottle?"

Approaching the cave, the youth from the Devil Palace spotted two other peculiar objects shimmering behind the Chaos Roc. Recognizing the Fallen Star Eyes and the Glass Bottle, he exclaimed, "Somehow, a number of people have lived through this! What's happening? How did those fools manage to survive?"

Initially, he seemed perplexed, as though he expected most of those who had ventured into the sea for training to have perished.

The sudden emergence of the Fallen Star Eyes and the glass bottle caught him off guard.

He paused, taken aback, then a surge of excitement washed over him. "A glass bottle and Fallen Star Eyes? Intriguing. They might just be able to penetrate the deep blue veil!"

Those outside, including the Chaos Roc, couldn't peer through the unseen crystal to witness the scene within the cave. They were oblivious to the presence of a Devil Palace youth now standing beside Yu Yuan.

Yet, he could clearly see the outside world, just as Yu Yuan could.

"By the way, which faction do you belong to?" he asked, turning to Yu Yuan with renewed interest. "You're with them, aren't you? So, do you know what's happening out there?"

"The last Aura Altar of the Blue Devil Clan, once suppressed by the Demon Palace and the Demon Palace at the ocean's depths, has now broken free," Yu Yuan replied calmly. "The Spiritual Altar attacks the stationed elders above, while the Blood Sacrificial Altar below hunts trialists like us."

"Ah! How did you come by this knowledge?" the youth exclaimed in surprise.

Yu Yuan nodded towards the Chaos Roc. "It informed me."

"It?" The youth was taken aback once more. "Is it allied with you?"

"Yes, I aided its release," Yu Yuan confirmed.

"Who exactly are you?" the youth demanded.

"I am Yu Yuan, from the former Silvermoon Empire. I arrived here aboard the Silver Rainbow Magic Shuttle of your Devil Palace."

"Never heard of it."

"I didn't expect you would have," Yu Yuan said, scanning the surroundings. He looked here and there before continuing, "I'm here in search of the Evil Cauldron. Do you have any idea where the Evil Cauldron, which vanished after the destruction of the Evil Sect, might be now?"

"Evil Cauldron?" The Demon Palace youth let out a strange laugh. "I thought you were more astute. But it seems that's not the case. The Evil Cauldron, haha, the Evil Cauldron! Isn't this the Evil Cauldron?" He gestured all around.

Yu Yuan was momentarily taken aback, then enlightenment dawned upon him.

The so-called sea-bottom cave was, in fact, the Evil Cauldron!

The deep, dark opening was the mouth of the Evil Cauldron!

And before him, the numerous skeletons scattered about were all within the Evil Cauldron!

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