It was not just the monsters; even the black spots floating in the surrounding silt were being pulled along, gathering into thin black streams.
The surrounding sea was instantly swept clean.
The destination of all these black streams, of all that defiled earth, eventually contracted and converged in a single direction.
A person stood there.
It was a figure clad in a black robe, shrouded in a faint haze of black smoke.
His back was turned to the crowd, and his stature was not particularly tall.
Yet, as he stood there, he seemed like the very center of this sea, the master of these thousands of currents.
The moment all the black spots and filth drew near him, they submissively melded into his body and vanished.
And from his person, a pure and vast dragon might was radiating—a pressure that drove every member of the Sea Race into a frenzy!
Cang Che stopped in his tracks just in time.
He felt his knees weakening, and the urge to prostrate himself had reached its absolute peak.
While the others had yet to react, still stunned into silence by the scene before them, Cang Che made a decisive move.
"Plop!"
A heavy thud echoed.
Cang Che slammed both knees onto the seabed, kicking up a cloud of silt.
Without a moment’s hesitation and disregarding all royal etiquette, he threw himself flat on the ground in a full prostration, shouting at the black-robed back.
"Lord Dragon Ancestor!"
The Sea Emperor and the various officials arriving from behind were jolted awake by that cry.
They stared at that silhouette, feeling the aura that made their very blood boil, and one by one, their eyes welled with tears.
"It truly is the Dragon Ancestor..."
"There is no mistake, it definitely is him!"
The Sea Emperor trembled with excitement. He hurriedly stepped down from his sedan, straightened his robes and crown, and prepared to lead the group in a formal grand ceremony.
However, before they could even get into formation...
They saw Cang Che ahead of them, using his knees and hands like a devout pilgrim, beginning to rapidly shuffle across the seabed on his knees.
Swish, swish, swish!
Cang Che’s knee-walking was incredibly fast, even creating a wake in the water.
Just like that, he knelt-walked for several thousand meters, charging directly behind the black-robed man.
The speed was so great it left everyone speechless.
Then, he slammed his head onto the ground, his forehead striking the undersea rock with a loud bang.
"Your unworthy descendant, Cang Che, pays respects to Lord Dragon Ancestor!"
"This descendant arrived late and allowed My Lord to be disturbed! I deserve ten thousand deaths!"
This series of smooth, fluid actions left the entire group of Sea Race spectators dazed.
The Sea Emperor’s mouth hung open, his beard twitching.
Old Turtle Prime Minister’s eyes nearly popped out of his head.
Was... was this really the second prince?
That slide-kneel... it was too smooth.
As they watched Cang Che’s incredibly devout posture, a strong sense of shame suddenly welled up in the hearts of the others.
Indeed.
In the presence of the Dragon Ancestor, how could they possibly approach while standing?
That was the height of disrespect!
His Highness is right; we are all unworthy descendants!
To think we actually considered walking over?
How utterly rude!
The Sea Emperor was the quickest to react. He tossed his scepter aside, fell to his knees with a "plop," and the others followed suit, sliding into kneels.
"Follow the second prince's example!"
"Kneel your way over!"
"Anyone who dares to stand is being disrespectful to the Dragon Ancestor!"
Thus, a spectacular sight appeared within the Red Coral Trench.
Over a thousand elite members of the Sea Race, including the Sea Emperor himself, were all kneeling in unison. Like a mass migration of seals, they knee-walked in a grand, surging wave toward the black-robed figure.
Chen Zhou’s lip twitched almost imperceptibly.
He was currently using the body of the Plague Rat.
The Plague Rat was a Fanatic Believer, and its compatibility as a vessel was extremely high, allowing him to exert about eighty percent of his original strength.
He hadn't been descended for long and was currently taking Poison-Wing around this area to conduct experiments.
He was trying different methods to deal with the black spots and discovered that his ghost domain was the most effective.
Before he could think further, an earth-shattering commotion erupted behind him.
First came a shrill cry of "Lord Dragon Ancestor," followed by a chaotic sequence of people hitting their knees.
Then, Chen Zhou saw a figure shuffling toward him on his knees as if powered by a motor, leaving a trail of silt in his wake.
"Your unworthy descendant, Cang Che, pays respects to Lord Dragon Ancestor!"
That voice was filled with such genuine, heart-wrenching emotion that it could move heaven and earth.
Chen Zhou: "..."
Although he had anticipated the Sea Race would be enthusiastic, he hadn't expected them to be this enthusiastic.
Is this the legendary slide-kneel?
Even before Chen Zhou turned around, he felt an overwhelming tide of faith rushing toward him.
Specifically from this Cang Che at his feet; his faith was so pure it practically glowed, nearly reaching the level of a Fanatic Believer.
Chen Zhou was already accustomed to such scenes.
He slowly turned around.
The face beneath the black robe was blurred, with only a pair of eyes flickering within the black mist, carrying a chilling indifference toward all living beings.
Beside him, Poison-Wing, who had been floating along, was currently scratching his head in utter confusion.
"My Lord, what... what is the situation here?"
Poison-Wing looked at the field of seafood kneeling before him, feeling a bit lost.
Though he was a demon king and used to be a leader with many followers back at Poison Flame Mountain, he had truly never seen a scene like this.
What was wrong with these Sea Race people?
Every single one was crying as if they’d lost their parents, and they were crawling on the ground?
'Surely they weren't intimidated by My Lord's overbearing aura, right?'
Poison-Wing looked at his master, then at his own vibrant purple feathers, thinking: 'Then again, maybe it's because I'm just too handsome?'
While Poison-Wing was daydreaming about whether he should strike a cooler pose...
Cang Che, kneeling on the ground, finally dared to raise his head to behold the Dragon Ancestor’s true visage.
Though the face was obscured, that thick dragon might and the divine power that could purify black spots with a casual wave of the hand confirmed it beyond a doubt—this was the Dragon Ancestor!
Cang Che was shaking all over with excitement.
His gaze moved from Chen Zhou and subconsciously landed on Poison-Wing.
At that sight, Cang Che’s eyes widened even further.
It was a bird.
A large bird with purple feathers all over, a slender frame, a crown atop its head, and tail feathers that were as brilliant as flowing fire.
He didn't possess the dragon might that forced submission like the Dragon Ancestor.
However, Cang Che keenly sensed another extremely ancient aura.
It felt like a prehistoric aura of lethal poison.
Poison-Wing’s destiny was the Six Disasters, making him a baleful star by nature. Combined with the awakening of the Zhen bloodline, he naturally carried the aura of an ancient poisonous bird.
Countless records from ancient texts flashed through Cang Che’s mind in an instant.
In this world, what bird was qualified to stand beside the Dragon Ancestor, to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the Lord of Ten Thousand Scales?
Besides the one who had also disappeared for tens of thousands of years—the legendary sovereign of the avian race who once stood on equal footing with the Dragon Ancestor, the Chief of Ten Thousand Feathers, the Primal Phoenix—who else could it be?!
"Purple mist from the east, a terrifyingly baleful aura, immune to all poisons..."
Cang Che murmured to himself. He looked at Poison-Wing’s feathers—which the bird had meticulously groomed to a glossy shine just to look cool—and the more he looked, the more it fit the description.
Although the Sea Race did not possess the true phoenix bloodline and couldn't confirm it as directly as they could with dragon might...
That didn't stop Cang Che from performing some logical mental gymnastics.
Since the Dragon Ancestor had appeared, it was only logical for the Primal Phoenix to appear as well, right?
Legend said that the dragon and phoenix bring prosperity. Although they supposedly fought in the ancient era, that was old news.
Now that the Dragon Ancestor had returned, he must have subdued the Primal Phoenix to serve as his aide!
Heavens, as expected of the Dragon Ancestor! The revival of my Sea Race is at hand!
Cang Che felt as though he might faint from sheer bliss.
Rate on N.U.
