Martial Ascent to Divinity-Chapter 599 - 579: Sea of Thunder

"This thing is not light, what’s it used for?" Zhou Leng examined it carefully.

The turtle shell was a mix of black, gray, and amber, the plates arranged neatly and carved with complex blue patterns, clearly containing some strange power within.

Azure Sword explained, "This is the ’Turtle Lock’ of our Sea Demon Race. We have a habit of hiding important treasures on underwater islands and set up a gate for this purpose. If forced open by violent means, the entire treasure will explode. Only by carrying this kind of Turtle Lock can it be safely unlocked. This is the Turtle Lock of the Azure Royal Family; only if the royal bloodline is pure enough, will the position of the treasure appear when blood is dripped on it."

"And then?"

"I’ll pawn this Turtle Lock to you; as long as we complete a cooperation, this treasure will be yours."

A few Sea Sirens behind flashed their gaze, wanting to stop, but looking at Zhou Leng’s strong body, then at the flesh and blood in front of the mirror, they shut up.

Zhou Leng released his hand and pushed the turtle shell back.

"Who knows if this thing is real."

Azure Sword, seeing Zhou Leng’s resistance, was even more unwilling to give up, saying, "After the trial ends, I’ll personally take you to get this treasure; you take half of the things inside, and the rest you’ll take once the first cooperation is completed."

"Forget it, the Sea Demon World is so dangerous. If we encounter the Sea Demon Army on the way, you’ll be fine, but I’ll definitely be killed," Zhou Leng said.

Azure Sword took out a fish bone about a foot long and handed it over, saying, "This is the ’Fish Demon Suit’. You all can’t use it, but we Sea Demons can help you use it. After using it, you’ll enter the Fish Demon Suit, appearing identical to a Fish Demon, absolutely unrecognizable."

"This thing, ah, I have lots, but unfortunately, can’t use them."

Zhou Leng shook his hand, and hundreds of Fish Demon Suits fell from the Magic Spirit Bag.

The Sea Sirens’ scalps tingled; how many Sea Demons must this person have killed to accumulate so many high-quality Fish Demon Suits?

Azure Sword’s eyes lit up, saying, "I can help you fence them. Also, I can now tell you some intel: the Trup Family, through the Eagle Alliance’s Sea Demon City, has established a secret trade route with us Sea Demons. Your Dragon Country’s Zhao Family is also involved."

"Don’t spout nonsense. How could the Zhao Family do business with Sea Demons?" Zhou Leng feigned displeasure.

Azure Sword said, "The way the Zhao Family makes money can’t be openly discussed."

"Let’s complete the first transaction then."

As Zhou Leng spoke, he took out from the Ten Realms Youth Battle and Great Battlefield all Sea Race items he couldn’t handle before, placed them on the ground.

Pile after pile of items that only Sea Sirens could use and know how to use, amassed into a small mountain.

The Sea Sirens behind were silent as chills, many of these spoils were royal family items, carved with exclusive Sea Siren royal family emblems.

This seemingly not-so-powerful human, exactly how many Sea Demons had they killed?

Azure Sword was also stunned, but there was no turning back, he quickly convinced himself that a person this powerful is worth investing in!

"I’ll handle all of it! Come over, help with the valuation, quote at ninety percent of the original price!" Azure Sword decided, even if he loses a bit on this business, he has to close the deal.

The Sea Sirens came forward together, appraising and recording.

The Sea Demon World isn’t a single country; it has a multi-currency system. Transactions with other races often use ’Abyssal Pearl’, refined from seawater near the ocean floor, as substitute money.

Abyssal Pearl contains strong power; it can not only enhance Sea Sirens’ power but also be used to craft Water Element Demon Spirit Artifacts or Demon Artifacts.

One Abyssal Pearl is approximately equivalent to one million Long Guoyuan.

After counting, Azure Sword said, "These goods, at ten percent off, are roughly worth 5700 Abyssal Pearls, equivalent to 5.7 billion of your Long Guoyuan. And the Turtle Lock treasure is at least ten times this value. It’s unlikely for this treasure not to contain the ’Soft Gold’ you humans especially need. Weapons made incorporating Soft Gold can significantly withstand True Qi power, as opposed to ordinary metals being destroyed by formidable True Qi."

Zhou Leng’s expression became serious upon hearing Soft Gold.

Soft Gold is only produced in the Sea Demon World and Demon Purgatory, yet it’s particularly suitable for human martial artists.

The Demon Alliance uses all means to block Soft Gold, causing humans to have been unable to obtain it in large quantities.

"Did Trup and the Zhao Family not trade Soft Gold with you?" Zhou Leng asked.

"Those two families trade for money; they’re not Blue Star, how could they trade Soft Gold?" Azure Sword replied.

"If there’s Soft Gold, I agree to the trade," Zhou Leng said.

Azure Sword was delighted, saying, "Rest assured, even if this treasure lacks Soft Gold, I’ll quickly arrange for a batch for you."

Other Sea Sirens sighed inwardly; Azure Sword and the Trup Family Zhao Family, what’s the difference?

Zhou Leng calculated in his heart; with Soft Gold and intel, returning to report to the Demon City Army wouldn’t be colluding with external enemies but enduring humiliation to exchange vital resources for Blue Star. The Demon City Army would, without doubt, be eager for him to trade with Azure Sword.

"Why not try to turn Azure Sword to our side?"

A fleeting thought crossed Zhou Leng’s mind.

Both parties settled the details, Azure Sword took out the Sea God Contract, made by a Demigod, possessing great binding power.

Zhou Leng, however, refused to sign it, citing concerns over unfair terms in the contract.

Azure Sword helplessly agreed to a verbal commitment, as Zhou Leng savors benefits, future concerns are non-existent, with financial bonds being more binding than contracts.

Only then did Zhou Leng accept the Heart of the Ocean and the turtle shell, before setting up a tent and placing alert Demon Spirit Artifacts at the entrance, feeling a bit more secure as he slept.

Upon waking, refreshed, nothing had happened.

It seems Azure Sword’s willingness to cooperate was indeed sincere.

Zhou Leng headed straight to the Thunder Mirror.

The Sea Sirens watched Zhou Leng enter it and disappear.

"Do you think he can do it?"

"Definitely, just a matter of time."

"It’s a pity..."

The Sea Sirens sighed softly; they lacked the courage to attempt the trial.

As he stepped into the Thunder Mirror, Zhou Leng immediately felt his hair stand on end, as if being watched by a terrifying divine spirit nemesis.

Rumble...

Turning to look, the heavens and earth were filled with dense flashes of lightning currents.

The thunderous land and ocean were all-thunder, and the sky was thunder too.

Between the Thunder Land and sky, lightning flashed densely like celestial columns, giant trees, waterfalls, varied and interconnecting heaven and earth.

Most lightning was bright white, some displaying strange colors, containing unique powers.

Beneath his feet was a circular platform of lightning roughly a hundred meters in diameter, densely packed with rotating thunderbolts.

Fine electrical currents burst at his feet, the heat and sting spreading across his skin.

If these were ordinary small lightning bolts, Zhou Leng’s skin could easily block them.

But among these lightning bolts, various powers were contained, primarily destructive star power, far more complex than the power of the previous two mirrors.

Zhou Leng inexplicably felt uneasy.

Whether it was encountering a magical comet or a vortex planet before, he never felt this way.

This world composed of lightning naturally possessed a peculiar majestic power.

Looking around, there was only lightning everywhere, nothing else.

Yet the more he looked, the heavier the formless pressure became.

"Pressure, almost divine pressure..."

Zhou Leng suddenly recalled the trial at the Great Battlefield, where the purple mist outside Celestial Bone City had a similar feeling.

But compared to the pressure here, the one outside Celestial Bone City seemed much weaker.

If a comparison had to be made, the feeling in the Dragon God imprint path seemed closer.

Crash!

A clear sound fell as a bolt of lightning, as thick as an arm and ten meters tall, struck him with light speed unable to be evaded.

In an instant, thunder flowed, enveloping his entire body.

Bzzz bzzz bzzz...

Dense electrical currents, like white light snakes, bounced on his body.

The newly grown hair instantly burned away, leaving faint black marks on his skin.

In the Sky Thunder Mirror, the first trial was to carbonize part of the skin.

Biting pain spread throughout his body, and Zhou Leng gasped.

The feeling of thunder all over his body was far more intense than previous trials.

What was most uncomfortable was that the current on his body did not dissipate immediately; instead, it connected with the lightning at his feet, forming a web of electricity that continued to bounce and crackle across his body.

Just when Zhou Leng wondered when it would stop, a second bolt of lightning descended from the sky.

Crash!

Denser currents spread all over his body.

The difficulty of the Sky Thunder Mirror far exceeded previous estimates.

After all, it was originally a trial for laying a foundation for a Martial Saint, at least requiring a Grandmaster to complete most of the trials.

One bolt of lightning, two bolts of lightning...

After the fifty-first bolt fell, the surface of his black-and-red skin from neck to navel split open with a crimson crack.

The main wound twisted like a flood dragon, and the small wounds around the main wound broke open in all directions, twisting like dragon claws, densely packed.

A small hundred-clawed blood dragon seemed to be lying on Zhou Leng’s chest.

"Hiss..."

Zhou Leng’s vision darkened.

The indescribably intense pain spread throughout his body.

The power within this lightning was extremely bizarre.

It even completely ignored the protection of his body and the augmentation of his spiritual will; once it touched his body, every part, inside and outside, was unbearably painful.

This lightning seemed to have a crushing impact on everything about him.

Not only did his body ache, but a strong sense of fear and dread arose in his heart.

He wanted to give up, wanted to admit defeat.

Zhou Leng even doubted whether this was a trial at all, or rather some kind of divine punishment.

Divine Reprimand.

Is the Ancient River Sect this perverse?

Even the Three Sons of Ancient River, at the Innate Realm, couldn’t possibly complete the Sky Thunder Mirror trial.

Crack!

Yet another bolt of lightning descended, splitting his skin and striking into his flesh.

On his back, a new blood dragon blossomed.

Zhou Leng let out a muffled groan.

Then bolt after bolt of lightning continued to strike.

The dense blood dragon scars crept all over his body.

When the hundredth bolt of lightning fell, Zhou Leng began to feel dazed.

The remaining skin on his body was scant, with muscles beneath splitting into variously sized ravines, skin lacerated, flesh torn.

Most terrifying was the thin filaments of electric current flowing through his wounds, never ceasing.

Zhou Leng did not give up.

Because within these lightning bolts, he sensed a power far stronger than in the Heaven Tide Mirror and the Sky Wind Mirror.

The starry true energy within was not only abundant but also more concentrated, of higher quality.

It was even a completely new form of starry true energy, as if it had been deliberately refined.

Every time the true energy singularity absorbed this starry true energy, his understanding of the "Primal True Energy Art" advanced, and the cultivation technique divine text in his mind became clearer.