Chapter 304 - A Threat from the Dragon Palace

Limitless City #3 Arena.

After finishing the battle, Lu Ran felt that this new mode was fantastic. For most beastmasters who believed in their strength, this was probably a dream battleground.

Just as Lu Ran was about to run another test match to see how Sudden Death King affected experience gain, a hand grabbed his shoulder.

“Lu.”

“What’s wrong?” Lu Ran turned and asked in a low voice.

The person who had found him was none other than Dr. Gu.

“Don’t start another match yet,” said Gu Qingyi.

Lu Ran looked at the fox-masked Dr. Gu in surprise while being confused. “Why?”

Gu Qingyi shook her head. “I don’t know either, but Manager Ying wants us to head out immediately.”

She had just finished a 1v1 match, instantly overwhelming her opponent. Although her familiar hadn’t leveled up, its growth rate had increased significantly.

If a beastmaster could maintain a winning streak without losing, this was indeed a training paradise. However, she felt this advantage would only last for a short period. In a couple of months, the Peak Arena would likely have no ordinary beastmasters left, and only a handful of top contenders would remain.

At that point, getting a winning streak would be as difficult as reaching the heavens. In the end, only those who were invincible within their level would continue climbing the ladder.

“What’s it up to now?” Lu Ran scratched his head.

***

Since Manager Ying had called them out, they had to go check. As soon as Lu Ran and Gu Qingyi stepped out of Limitless City, they saw Manager Ying sprawled across the couch, multiple tablets placed before it. Its cat paws swiped across the screens at lightning speed as it sifted through information.

“Ying?” Gu Qingyi called out to the one who had sent her a message, urging her to leave the arena.

“I just received some intel not long after you guys left.”

Without looking up, Manager Ying continued scanning the incoming data.

“Did some Legendary Secret Realm appear?” Lu Ran cracked open a bottle of water, gulping it down.

He had swung his sword quite a bit in the previous fight and needed to replenish his energy.

“No! Qingyi, you’re about to have trouble.” Manager Ying sighed.

Gu Qingyi’s expression remained calm as she waited for Manager Ying to continue. As one of Xia’s few first-generation beastmasters, she had long developed a strong mentality.

“Earlier, Dark Crow discovered that Mystic Turtle was in Dragon Palace. So, I activated my intel network to investigate further. And then, I found something big. Do you know why Dragon Palace and the Merfolk Kingdom are at war?” Manager Ying asked.

“For resources? For territory?” Lu Ran instinctively responded.

A nation’s intelligence resources were limited, and knowledge about the deep sea was scarce. Although the deep sea was just as dangerous, its current power structure was one of warlord conflict, making it less of a concern for land nations.

As a result, most intelligence networks focused on monitoring land’s fierce beast forces rather than those in the deep sea. When it came to why deep sea factions were fighting, resource competition was the first thing that came to mind.

Manager Ying nodded. “That’s part of it. But according to my intel network, the resources they’re fighting over this time are different. A long time ago, there was an invincible Deep Sea Dragon King, said to be the closest thing to a Legendary Dragon Species. It lived for an extremely long time and was one of the strongest rulers of the deep sea.

“Unfortunately, when spirit energy dissipated, its age became a liability rather than an asset. In the end, its lifespan ran out, and its body disintegrated along with the fading spirit energy. However, its Dragon Pearl remained intact. Legends say that this mystical Dragon Pearl contains unfathomable power and is considered a treasure of the dragon species. It is said to help a dragon ascend to the Quasi-Legendary level.

“At the time, countless deep sea forces fought over this Dragon Pearl. But in the end, no single faction claimed it. Instead, the Dragon Pearl was shattered into four fragments, which were scattered across the ocean. As spirit energy fully dissipated, the war for the Dragon Pearl did not last long. That is until now when the Spiritual Energy Revival has brought it back into play.

“The Merfolk King is rumored to have obtained one fragment of the Dragon Pearl. The Dragon King of Dragon Palace is also rumored to have acquired at least one fragment. And the reason for their conflict was that the Dragon King of Dragon Palace wants to take the fragment from the Merfolk King to reassemble the Dragon Pearl, and see if it can be fully restored.”

𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

“I see. So it’s still about resource competition, but this time, it’s an ancient Epic resource. Wait a minute, what does this have to do with Dr. Gu?” Lu Ran turned sharply to look at Gu Qingyi, whose expression had grown increasingly grim.

“Huh? Qingyi didn’t tell you?” Manager Ying raised an eyebrow.

“She also has a Dragon Pearl fragment. The reason she was the first to nurture a Dragon-attribute familiar is because of it. I now suspect that the fragment she found is from the same Dragon Pearl that the Dragon Palace and the Merfolk Kingdom are fighting over.

“Latest intel says that the Merfolk Kingdom has suffered a crushing defeat. Dragon Palace has also withdrawn its forces, likely because the Dragon King has achieved its goal and seized the Merfolk Kingdom’s Dragon Pearl fragment. This information came directly from within the Merfolk Kingdom.

“If the Dragon King wants to complete the Dragon Pearl, I’m worried that its next target will be on land. And that target will be Gu Qingyi’s Azure Sea Dragon.”

“What...” Lu Ran’s face went blank, while Gu Qingyi was completely caught off guard.

She had never expected that the fragment she picked up would have such an extensive lore.

“Manager Ying is right. When I was a kid, I found a beautiful stone while playing on the beach. It looked special, so I took it home and kept it as a collection piece. At first, I didn’t think much of it. But later, I noticed that my familiars were strangely attracted to it, which made me suspect it wasn’t ordinary.

“I only discovered its true nature when Limitless City first appeared. I brought the stone into a trial secret realm, where it was identified as a Treasure-grade shattered Dragon Pearl fragment. Because it was already broken, it had no direct use, aside from its exceptional quality.

“Later, during an ascension realm, I met a powerful cultivator. She guided me in fusing the Dragon Pearl fragment into my familiar’s bloodline, saying that as it evolved, it would gradually awaken the power of the Dragon Pearl. That’s how I became the first to nurture a Dragon-attribute familiar. If my fragment is the one that Dragon Palace is after, then this is a major problem.”

Manager Ying sighed. “That’s exactly the issue. Your Dragon Pearl fragment has already been absorbed by the Azure Sea Dragon. If the Dragon King of Dragon Palace is truly desperate for the Dragon Pearl, it might just kidnap your Azure Sea Dragon for research. Not to mention, another piece of intel suggests that Dragon Palace is currently aggressively recruiting dragonblood creatures.”

Manager Ying glanced at Lu Ran, its expression implying:

Your little Mystic Turtle might just be one of the unlucky targets.

“After receiving this intel, I don’t know why, but I have a really bad feeling about this.” It furrowed its brows in deep thought.

Even if my theory is correct, why am I reacting so much? At the end of the day, I’m just an outsider in this mess.

After hearing Manager Ying’s warning, Gu Qingyi nodded.

“I—”

Just as she was about to say I’ll be careful, her phone rang. She answered the call, and her expression instantly changed.

“Manager Ying, your curse is unreal.”

Manager Ying was taken aback.

“What happened, Dr. Gu?” Lu Ran immediately asked after seeing her expression change.

“Just as we were talking about it, Mystic City has just detected a Dragon-attribute fierce beast from the deep sea moving at high speed toward the city.” Gu Qingyi was serious.

No way...

Lu Ran was stunned. He turned to Manager Ying, his gaze sharp.

Are you actually possessed by Dark Crow right now?

But the realization quickly set in. If Manager Ying’s theory was right, this wasn’t just a simple problem.

***

Sometime earlier, inside a massive undersea structure deep within the ocean, a terrifying presence erupted, sending violent shockwaves through the waters. A colossal dragon, stretching hundreds of meters long, raised its head and roared. Its body was surrounded by black flames that burned even in the deep sea. Its form was massive, and its scales were as dark as the abyss.

Having just completed a breakthrough, the dragon wasted no time. It locked onto a tempting scent and shot upward, piercing through the ocean’s surface like a missile.

As it broke through the waves, the sky above immediately darkened. But instead of lightning, the black storm clouds crackled with explosive black flames. The black dragon’s massive golden eyes scanned the sea. Then, its gaze turned toward a human city on land. As it let out another deafening bellow, its entire body ignited with dark flames. Then it flew toward Mystic City at terrifying speed like a meteor of destruction.

At that moment, Mystic City detected the entity’s presence. They immediately issued an emergency alert.

At the Disaster Response Center in Mystic City, a researcher stared at the screen in shock.

“What is that?”

They had no idea why a deep-sea behemoth had suddenly emerged and was heading straight for the city. The Mystic City Beastmaster Association responded instantly. Many level 2 and level 3 beastmasters quickly mobilized, gathering near the coastline.

At sea, warships were rapidly assembling. In the air, fighter jets soared out to intercept. Meanwhile, as Mystic City’s guardian, Gu Qingyi clenched her fist upon seeing the photos sent by the Beastmaster Association.

Just moments ago, they were discussing whether Dragon Palace would start a war over the Dragon Pearl fragment. Now, a deep-sea Dragon-type fierce beast was already speeding toward the city without giving them a single moment to prepare.

“SEE?”

Manager Ying’s eyes twitched wildly, its mind filled with internal WTFs. It had just briefly investigated the situation, and now there was an actual disaster incoming.