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"Tens of thousands of water tribes?"

Murong Yunji stared blankly at the other party. This courtyard of the Lee Family was on the eastern edge of the city, at least half a city away from the seaport. Could she really see the water tribes landing from such a distance?

"Did the senior see them?" Wei Gongzhan was also stunned.

"I smelled them," Ao Zhen said indifferently.

"The unique fishy smell of the water tribes is very obvious when they first come ashore, and my Dragon Clan lineage allows me to have a very sensitive sense of smell. Although this place is quite far from the seaport, I can still smell them. Moreover, there’s another serious problem. "

"Hmm?"

"The humidity here is very high... much higher than a normal seaport city," Ao Zhen looked towards Murong Yunji. "Perhaps ordinary people can’t feel it, but you should be able to sense it, right?"

Murong Yunji frowned and nodded, "It is indeed much more humid than the West Sea. I always thought it was due to the Nanhai Dragon Palace. Could it be caused by some special factor?"

"Only when the Flood Dragons gather does such a temporary increase in water vapor occur," Ao Zhen said somberly.

"Flood Dragons control the water vapor and can collect the Essence of Water for the Dragon Palace. Generally, Flood Dragons are distributed across the four seas or even in some rivers. If one or two return occasionally, it is because they have collected enough essence and temporarily come back for rewards, then they will continue their collection journey. Such a situation normally wouldn’t occur.

The only possibility now is that at least a thousand Flood Dragons have returned! "

"Is there such a theory?" Murong Yunji felt enlightened, and then said, "Is it an action of the Nanhai Dragon Palace?"

"The Flood Dragons only heed the Pureblood Dragon Race.

In this region of the Southern Sea, the bloodline highest in rank belongs to the Nanhai Dragon Clan.

The Dragon King has absolute control over the Flood Dragons, which is why we in the West Sea have not been able to fully control those Flood Dragons to this day. "

"Then what does the Nanhai Dragon Palace want to do?" Murong Yunji asked, puzzled. "Didn’t you say earlier that the strange unease came from that Chen Family lad? I thought the problem lay with the Chen Family boy this time."

"I am also puzzled..." Ao Zhen said indifferently.

"That Chen Family boy definitely has a problem, and on my way here through the city, I paid attention.

In several estates in the city, unsettling auras emanate, a strangeness that should come from your Human Race noble families.

But why is the Nanhai Dragon Palace acting as if it wants to stir up significant trouble. .."

"This..." Wei Gongzhan listened with twitching eyelids. "The Nanhai Dragon Palace... wants to do something big?"

"What do you think? Calling back thousands of Flood Dragons and sending tens of thousands of water tribes ashore, do you think they’re here in Nanhai City to celebrate the New Year?"

Wei Gongzhan: "...."

"But..." Murong Yunji frowned. "Isn’t it recorded in the ancient texts that once you are of the Dragon Clan, you’ll be seen as a close kin by the Dragon Palace, regardless of your previous bloodline, and they won’t shun you, which is why there’s a rush among all races to undergo Dragon Transformation. .."

Hearing this, the other party raised an eyebrow and said with a touch of amusement, "You believe that?"

Murong Yunji: "....."

"Opening Dragon Transformation to all races is fundamentally because the Dragon Clan’s bloodline is not flourishing, and they risk extinction if they are not careful.

On top of that, there’s the threat from the Celestial Serpent Palace.

Adult members of the Dragon Clan have to go to the battlefield and face risks, with deaths far outnumbering births.

Moreover, the Celestial Serpent Palace is different from us; they are oviparous, spawning more than a dozen at a time. .."

"If Dragon Transformation wasn’t open to all, our Dragon Palace would have been wiped out long ago.

As for what your Human Race’s ancient books say.

.. tsk... if they didn’t put it that way, how could they entice all races to compete for Dragon Transformation?

Could they tell you that the Dragon Clan needs cannon fodder for the battlefield? "

Murong Yunji and Wei Gongzhan both twitched at these words. They say Human Race is cunning, but these demons are no less so; all are black-hearted.

"So, from the start, the Dragon Clan didn’t genuinely care for the Southern Sea nobility.

With the two houses cooperating, I’m afraid they have different dreams in the same bed.

.. But wait!" Wei Gongzhan quickly analyzed, "My brother has sent scouts to investigate this place.

The Southern Sea nobility has the highest number of those who have undergone Dragon Transformation, clearly showing that the Nanhai Dragon Palace has given up most of its resources.

In contrast, the noble families are fully committed to unlocking the Southern Sea water tribes.

Now the Southern Sea has the Yaksha troops and the strongest water tribes, which is not right; it is now the forefront among the Four Dragon Palaces, indicating the most successful cooperation. "

"Yet, the situation has turned out like this, which seems unreasonable."

"Unreasonable in what way?" Ao Zhen looked at Wei Gongzhan. Although the young man lacked some common knowledge, his actions at the dock suggested he was a person of careful thought. Perhaps he might have some insights.

"If the Southern Sea nobility had other intentions, they wouldn’t release a large number of Southern Sea water tribes like this. Doing so means entrusting their own safety entirely to the Nanhai Dragon Clan. In such a case, it’s even more unreasonable to be scheming in secret."

"Then how do you think it could be?" Ao Zhen asked in return. "You saw it just now, that unusual feeling comes from the Human Race itself."

"Don’t your water tribe have a kind of sea monster that can implant itself into the human brain and then impersonate a member of the human race?

" Wei Gongzhan suddenly recalled this, as sailors fear sea monsters the most on sea voyages.

Now that trade in Jiangnan is so booming, the ability of the Gate Deity to detect sea monsters certainly plays a significant advantage.

"Oh, are you talking about demon insects?" Ao Zhen nodded and said, "Strictly speaking, those creatures are not considered part of the water tribe, because no respectable member of our tribe would deal with such things. They belong to the insect race and don’t just harm humans; they target any living beings that fall below them in the food chain. The reason they haven’t feasted on dragon brains is simply that they lack the capability. These creatures are also ostracized within the water tribe, and I’ve not heard of any Dragon Palace taking them as subordinates. "

Then, she added, "Moreover, such beings couldn’t possibly cause me such a strong sense of unease, not even a king of the demon insects could qualify for that."

"Elder..." Wei Gongzhan spoke solemnly, "My point wasn’t to suggest that Chen Zhuo is possessed by a sea monster. I meant to ask if there is something within the Dragon Palace—something with the abilities of a sea monster that can parasitize the human race and control them?"

"This..." Upon hearing these words, Ao Zhen furrowed her brows but soon realized the logic was sound.

If the Nnaihai families had been deceived by the Nanhai Dragon Palace from the start, then the dangerous anomalies within the families might not stem from humans themselves.

Could it possibly be the Nanhai Dragon Palace?

But what could it be?

Ao Zhen thought for a moment and said, "Experiments conducted within the Central Dragon Palace might give rise to such beings. However, that place is mainly fiddled with by my good-for-nothing third brother, with scant involvement from the Nanhai forces. Nevertheless, it’s uncertain.

.." She then looked at the other party, "You’re very clever, and your thinking is quite reasonable. What do you think we should do next?"

"We’re here to gather intelligence, not to change the big picture.

" Wei Gongzhan’s mind was exceptionally clear at the moment as he rapidly said, "Moreover, according to what you’ve said Elder, the Nanhai Dragon Palace is probably going to take action today; we can’t change that even if we wanted to.

My suggestion is to withdraw and immediately report the situation up the chain.

Of course, if we could capture a specimen, that would be all the better.

However, actively seeking trouble might carry risks, so that’s a decision I’ll have to leave to you, Elder. "

"Trouble, huh..." Ao Zhen glanced at the outside of the residence, "It seems trouble has already come knocking on its own."

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"What in the world is going on?"

The Dragon Transformed Sorcerers from the great families of the Southern Sea also detected the presence of the water tribe coming ashore and flew out of their homes one by one, gathering together with grave faces as they gazed at the dark clouds in the sky.

The atmosphere was heavy with moisture, and those dark clouds seemed to herald more than a simple downpour. It felt... as if a storm was about to arrive, didn’t it?

"But has something happened in the Dragon Palace?"

"We haven’t heard anything... Third Elder Chen, doesn’t your Chen Family have the deepest connection with the Dragon Palace? Haven’t you received any news either?"

The old man known as Third Elder Chen also furrowed his brow upon hearing this. Looking into the distance, he wondered why there was no message from there about such a significant occurrence. Could something have befallen the Dragon King, or had there been...

A foreboding feeling arose in everyone’s hearts. Initially, a large number of family Elders set out for Yundu, leaving tens of thousands from the restored water tribe as security for the Southern Sea.

However, if these tens of thousands from the water tribe were not protectors but enemies, then the situation could become quite messy to deal with.

Considering this, several family Elders exchanged looks, nodded to each other, and then activated their bloodlines.

Dragon scales covered their human skin, and the roar of dragons resounded, as each transformed into the unique flame dragons of the Southern Sea and flew above the city gates, looking down at the water tribe that had approached near the gates of Nanhai City.

"What brings you ashore? Is it by the command of the Dragon King?"

This was both an inquiry and a warning. Although many family Elders were away, and Nanhai City lacked suitable military power, there was no shortage of Dragon Vein Sorcerers left to guard the city.

Combined with the Arrays set up outside Nanhai City and the efforts of several dozen Dragon Vein Sorcerers, even tens of thousands from the water tribe might not be able to breach Nanhai!

The tens of thousands from the water tribe looked up at the sky, hesitant for a moment, a sight that offered the family Elders a small sigh of relief.

Nanhai City relied heavily on the Dragon Palace, but it was not entirely unprepared.

For example, in the revival process, only mid- to low-level members of the water tribe were restored, with the most powerful being the Yaksha generals.

Not a single True Dragon indigenous to the Nanhai Dragon Palace had been unsealed, partly due to insufficient resources, and partly as a precaution.

After all, nobody could be sure whether accidents might occur if a Pureblood Dragon Race member were to be unsealed.

The Dragon Palace functioned under a bloodline hierarchical system where the Dragon Clan had a natural suppression over ordinary members of the water tribe.

Now, with several dozen Dragon Vein Sorcerers present, even tens of thousands from the water tribe posed minimal threat to themselves.

The very aura of dragon might they emitted might be enough to keep these creatures at bay!

Although uncertain about what had happened, the current situation was not yet dire.