Things Escalate

Massive amounts of seawater swirled, twisting the surface of the ocean into rippling whirlpools. Primordial Qi was extremely rich in this environment, almost suffocating. Any weaker lifeforms have long since fled from the region.

"Even though we are still a distance away, we can already feel such powerful phenomenons," Yinglong said in wonder as the group of dragons and rogue cultivator passed through the ocean. "Are we sure this is only a high grade treasure?"

"At this rate? Probably not," Zulong stated with agreement from Bai Jian. This amount of supernatural phenomenons and in such power was on its way of eclipsing what a high grade xiantian treasure could produce.

Yinglong dodged to the side avoiding a large wave kicked up by the commotion. "How much further?" He asked.

"I don't think we're far," Zulong said before frowning. "It's hard to tell with so much disturbance, I can barely get any read on the signals."

The sky of the west sea had long since darkened into a storm. The dragons turned their gaze upwards at the luminous clouds. It was extremely similar to the event which birthed them and the two treasures Zulong carries.

"Bai Jian, what about you?" Qinglong asked.

"I can subtlety feel it. But Zulong is right, there are so much primordial Qi in the area that it's hard to tell what is what anymore. It's like a million voices screaming at once," the white haired swordsman said in annoyance.

The waters raged and raged. The sky rumbled and howled. Lightning was beginning to descend with booming thunder. A subtle cry was somewhat heard admist the storm.

Zulong frowned, were they mistaken. Instead of a new treasure, was this a new lifeform instead? An innate god like himself and his brothers? The possibility was very likely.

"Let's check this out, brothers be careful," Zulong instructed and strolled forwards. His footsteps echoed through the air suppressing the winds and waves coming towards him. He was not touching solid ground, but rather using a form of spell that created a similar effect.

With each step, he paved the way and others followed. A stable path devoid of danger. Assured and steady.

The storm was beginning to get more violent. The west sea itself was also tossing and turning. Out of the corner of his eye, Zulong could see some cultivators fleeing from the eye of the storm. He nodded silently, it was wise to leave if one did not possess the power to be here.

"The build up is reaching a crescendo," Bai Jian said. His eyes glowed a pale blue scanning far into the distance. He narrowed his eyes concentrating his supernatural vision. "That way," he said pointing southwest of their current location.

Zulong nodded and led the charge. As they moved further and further, the storm became stronger and stronger. A unanimous thought surfaced among the group. This was no longer just a simple treasure.

A month passed as the group travelled to the epicentre. For the dragons and rogue cultivator, it was not a journey that was too difficult. However, they couldn't shake a certain feeling of dread.

Qinglong observed the waters below him and narrowed his eyes. His sixth sense has been going off for the past month and he couldn't quite grasp what it was. Besides him, Bai Jian was also experiencing the same thing. It was almost irritating.

…

"Hold steady," the Golden Immortal general Chi commanded his remaining troops. The treasure ship that was the prison facility currently transporting his prisoner had been caught roughly by the violent waves.

Water was almost second nature for seafood like general Chi but even a storm such as this can be overbearing to deal with. 'We were lucky reinforcements arrived,' the general thought.

If the emperor of the four seas had not had the foresight to send more troupes after his departure, they would've been unable to hold Zhuque. This mere act was beginning to restore the general's faith in the emperor.

The general had sighed in relief when the twenty-sixth army arrived. They were one of the new legions formed after the disastrous war that was the eastern war and were filled with immortal soldiers of great strength. A sizeable portion had even crossed into the True Immortal realm.

Si Hai's prime minister Sha was much more liberal in the use of cultivation resources than the emperor himself. Perhaps that's why the poor man had died.

General Chi had only gotten the news from a fellow soldier when the reinforcements arrived with the ship. The emperor had come out of seclusion sometime ago and the first act of his agenda was to behead the prime minister. Although he'd miss the man, he didn't think too much about it, Si Hai's temper wasn't something he'd want to risk.

High grade xiantian treasure, the universe traversing boat. General Chi wouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth. He'd use this ship to get home first and report. He looked nervously across the deck, the muscular figure of Si Hai sat lazily on a makeshift throne eating and drinking away. He was oozing with arrogance and contempt.

Words needn't be exchanged for the message to be sent. General Chi was a swordfish, he should have no trouble with the sea.

Si Hai yawned in boredom. He looked northwest with anticipation and interest. He'd take his new treasure first, then take care of the east sea's Da Hai. Finally, that rebellious chicken on the mainland will be dealt with.

'So much to do so little time,' Si Hai idly thought. 'Pitiful illusions won't be a problem anymore. Pathetic of you Da Hai, honestly, relying on illusions to fight, how the mighty have fallen.'

The emperor of the sea tapped his armrest watching as his incompetent generals steered the ship. He was half a mind to disintegrate them for it. However, that one swordfish named Chi had reached the Golden Immortal realm. Something very few innate creatures can claim.

His mood was slowly improving, having to be woken up to find more then half his vault missing was maddening. Waking up to find a scurrying rat using his things was maddening. Waking up to find a couple of tiny chickens claiming to be emperor was rage inducing.

He had half a mind to eat the bird Chi had captured right now. But he decided it was more fitting of a punishment to eat her infant of her sister. That would be much more satisfying.

Said prisoner was silently meditating. Zhuque looked like a statue completely still. She made no movements nor sound and was quite unnerving for those guarding her. However, she was no longer bound. Her ropes were removed and the only thing holding her back were weak steel bars. A subtle message from her captor.

The vermillion bird opened a sliver of her eye. The arrogance of Si Hai was well known to her. He had not bothered to seal her cultivation. As such, she was able to detect her surroundings with accuracy.

'A chaos godfiend forefather,' she thought grimly. The prospects of getting away were not good. She'd long since calmed down from her initial defeat but she was still very much uneasy. Waiting for a good opportunity just got a lot harder.

A bolt of immortal lightning struck the sea in an explosion that tossed the ship along the waves. The tussling water disturbed Si Hai who slammed his fist into his armrest forcefully calming the waves.

Another bolt of lightning struck out. In fact, the storm had gotten very wild. General Chi drew the Kunwu sword and slashed a bolt apart. He cast a look at his men and immediately went to rescue the weaker ones.

Between Immortals and mortals, the former can somewhat take care of themselves in this storm. The current bolts of lighting had reached a stage where they were genuine threats to Heavenly Immortals. Only Golden immortals like general Chi was safe.

Several thousand kilometres away, Zulong and his group defended themselves from the assaulting lightning. The golden lightning bounced harmlessly off of the dragon's scales while Bai Jian seemed to not be affected at all.

"Something is happening," Bai Jian said. His blue eyes shone brightly in the dark sky. The dragons each nodded and braced themselves.

As if on signal, the water around them all exploded in a fountain of power. Erupting from deep within the earth was a geyser of raw primordial Qi. It shot high into the sky connecting with the heavens above.

The sight of the three hundred sixty five stars was even visible beyond the pillar. It was as if a ladder was being constructed that reached the stars themselves.

'Such a terrifying natural phenomenon,' Zulong thought as the dark clouds were blasted apart. He shielded his eyes at the ensuing light. Even Si Hai was forced to look away and wait for the light to settle.

When it did, an island had appeared in its place. A landmass stretching on for at least fifty thousand kilometres and reassembled a continent in and of itself. It was an extremely beautiful location, one filled with soft forests and shining rivers.

It's most notable feature was a tall thick tree with a purple trunk and dark green leaves. Its bark had the texture of an elm tree and on its branches gre yellow wrinkly fruits resembling jujubes.

The tree sat comfortably on a hill beside a river leading up to it. Its trunk was so tall that it touched the sky. A small opening at the peak of the trunk revealed a small opening into the starry sky itself. Its branches radiated with stellar Qi absorbed from the stars which in turn empowered the tree.

"No doubt about it, this is on par with the Fusang tree at least," Zulong said feeling overwhelmed. The sudden rapid buildup was beyond his expectations. It was like a giant had suddenly awoken, taking the place of a much less significant event.

The prospects of it scarred Zulong. This tree was connected to the starry sky. From the looks of it, it was rooted in place. Cutting it down will not be simple, nor easy. The dragon looked at the roots, they seemed irrelevant when put in comparison to the trunk but they too were hiding something.

Zulong looked at the land below and spotted a glimmering light. It condensed into a small lantern shaped like a lotus. It was green in colour and shimmered with immortal power. Evidently, it was a high grade xiantian treasure.

"Looks like this is it," Bai Jian said. He folded his arm and looks somewhat disappointed. He was hoping for a new weapon to wield in combat, preferable a sword. As such his disappointment was understandable.

The group descended near the tree and took in the sights around them. The river leading up to the tree was crystal clear. The water was sparkling and very beautiful. Zulong took a small drink and smiled in amazement. The life giving power of the water was astounding, it was better than any longevity pill he'd tried, second only to the Fusang tree's mulberry fruits.

Upon further inspection, the water was directly flowing from the tree. It was the plant that was probably the source of the life-force.

'Wait no, that's not it either,' Zulogn thought.

"Come out," Bai Jian suddenly announced. His booming voice rippled the water. Zulong raised his eyebrow, had Bai Jian seen something he didn't?

In response to the rogue cultivator's command, the water rippled. Something cloaked in white fur swam to the surface. It was a creature brimming with power, an innate god of the Golden Immortal realm.

He resembled a fox with snow white fur. He had small horns protrusions lining his back. This deity also possessed a long flowing tail.

The fox creature swam up to the surface and walked up to the group. Its feat touched the grass softly and gracefully.

"Who are you supposed to be?" Bai Jian asked.

"Chenghuang," the fox said softly.

"You after the lantern?" The swordsman asked again.

"No," Chenghuang answered.

"Oh? Not interested in a weapon to supplement your strength?"

"No," Chenghuang answered softly.

"Ah, you know you can't win here," Bai Jian said in realisation.

"Yes."

"Not much of a talker is he?" Qinglong commented. Indeed, Chenghuang spoke softly and only in short words. He looked to be very mildly tempered.

Suddenly, the wind kicked up. Zulong narrowed his eyes. This feeling was very familiar, the exact same as an old enemy.

A sharp claw made of air swept the area. It flattened trees and carved the land. Zulong, Qinglong, Yinglong, and Bai Jian leapt out of the way immediately. Chenghuang had also followed their example and jumped out of the way, his flowing tail was very beautiful as he did so.

"Shen Feng," Zulong stated with no small amounts of contempt. The blade of wind clashed harmlessly along the tree but the effect was achieved. The ancestor of divine winds had appeared right next to the lantern and gripped the handle.

"This treasure is mine. On the account of your master, I'll show some mercy," Shen Feng claimed. He signalled for the dragons to leave. Zulong felt extremely conflicted, on one hand, Shen Feng was a genuine Chaos Immortal. On another, the godfiend wasn't particularly strong.

There was a real possibility Zulogn could win. But Da Hai's words invaded his mind and he quickly squashed that thought. The risk associated wasn't worth the trouble.

"Mere high grade isn't worth such efforts," Zulong said to his teammates.

"Just where did that guy come from?" Bai Jian asked grimly.

"He always shows up at the most inopportune of times," Qinglong growled. "Liken him to scavenger," he said.

"JUST WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?" An arrogant voice boomed on the horizon. The shirtless Si Hai carrying his harpoon stood mid air looking at Shen Feng with unhidden contempt.

"I saw that first," the emperor of the four seas said. Shen Feng took a small step back. He was sweating since Si Hai first appeared. The previous storm made sensing anything difficult and Shen Feng couldn't feel the emperor at all.

Wordlessly, Shen Feng unleashed a hurricane. He kicked up a storm that engulfed the island uncaring of who he hit. He struck everywhere with his power and threw his wind blast at the emperor of the sea.

Si Hai scoffed and punched out at the wind.

Even Zulong took a minute to steady his footing and held his allies back. Chenghuang had bolted and ran behind the tree's massive roots to hide. His tiny size made such a task easy.

"Let's get out of here," Zulong instructed. Si Hai had already engaged Shen Feng, this was a very good opportunity.

As the wind kicked up, the sea rose to meet it. Wind and water clashed tearing the land apart. Chenghuang who was hidden looked enraged at seeing his birth place damaged so but remained out of sight and safe.

Beyond anyone's notice. A red bird flew out into the sky, she took one look at the battle and turned to leave.