"Things that can block Spiritual Sense are nothing more than cloth or boxes; these items are all too common in Sea City. This is the Dragon Palace Sea City, the most bustling Sea City in the entire East Sea. During transactions, it’s perfectly normal to use cloth or boxes to wrap items."

Another Elder shook his head, "It doesn’t matter, it has already narrowed down our search. The cloth or box holding the Dragon Ball won’t be too large, and it must be of a high grade, imperceptible even to those at the Body Integration Realm."

"Such high-level cloth or boxes are rare; the ones we’ve sent out from the Dragon Clan to search are all at the Spirit Transformation stage or higher, and they can’t see through it. There’s a very high chance that these boxes are our target."

The theft of the Dragon Ball was a serious matter, and the Elders mobilized all the forces they could to search for the Dragon Ball.

"Should we lock down the suspect to the Integration Period?"

"No, the perpetrator is without a doubt at the Integration Period, but the criminal might also have subordinates. To avoid us, they may let their subordinates carry the Dragon Ball."

"Of course, we must investigate all the Integration Period Cultivators currently in Sea City, no matter the reputation—good or bad!"

An Elder angrily slammed the table, "Last time the Dragon Ball was stolen, it was done by the Old Buyu thief, and this time, which thief dares to commit the crime!"

"Enough, what’s the use of saying this now? The urgent matter is to find the Dragon Ball as fast as possible, or else let’s just wait for the Palace Master’s fury."

...

"Where should we start looking for the Dragon Ancestor Grass?" Meng Jingzhou was troubled; they were completely clueless about Sea City.

"We’ll just have to search slowly; consider it browsing through Sea City." Lu Yang was very laid-back about it.

"By the way, Junior Brother Li, have you been to the Dragon Palace’s Sea City before?"

"I haven’t."

"Alright then."

Lu Yang and the others roamed aimlessly through Sea City; they had three days and were in no rush.

"Huh, the Dragon Clan has temples, too?" Lu Yang passed by a temple bustling with incense, where both the Sea Clan and the Human race came to offer prayers.

"What temple is this?" Lu Yang walked curiously into the temple and discovered that there were no divine statues inside, just a spirit tablet with the words "Ying Dragon Revered One" written on it.

Li Haoran said, "Senior Brother Lu, don’t you know? This is the temple of the Ying Dragon Revered One. It’s very famous among the Sea Clan."

"Legend has it that the Ying Dragon Revered One was an extremely powerful being from the ancient Dragon Clan, controlling the celestial phenomena. The weather and thunderstorms would change according to his moods. There are also rumors that the Ying Dragon Revered One was a True Dragon, even more powerful than the Dragon Clan Ancestor."

Lu Yang thought to himself that he had indeed heard of a Ying Dragon, named Yingtian Immortal, who had cultivated the Dragon Transformation Manual and had transformed into a True Dragon, thus earning the title of Ying Dragon. This was a side story told by Fairy Eternity when she explained the Dragon Transformation Manual.

If nothing was unexpected, Yingtian Immortal and the Ying Dragon Revered One should be the same person.

Considering he knew all about Yingtian Immortal’s shameful past, and thinking about how he himself would have to Pass the Thunder Tribulation once he reached the Spirit Transformation stage, out of a sense of guilt, Lu Yang felt he should at least light an incense for Yingtian Immortal.

Lu Yang lit a stick of incense and imitated the crowd, bowing respectfully.

"To every debt there’s a creditor, and to every crime there’s a culprit. If Your Excellency is seeking revenge, please look for Fairy Eternity."

"And by the way, please help find Ao Ling and the Dragon Ancestor Grass."

Meng Jingzhou and the other two saw Lu Yang offering incense and thought he was just immersing himself in the culture of the East Sea. They each lit a stick of incense and also bowed to the Ying Dragon Revered One.

Regrettably, the Ying Dragon Revered One did not manifest. After one day, having visited numerous places, they still hadn’t found the Dragon Ancestor Grass.

"Strange, why do I feel like someone is tracking us?" Lu Yang frowned. He always felt as if someone’s Spiritual Sense was repeatedly sweeping over the wooden box he carried, but when he tried to sense it carefully, there was nothing.

It was either his own delusion, or the level of the opponent’s concealment was terrifyingly high.

"Could the Dragon Clan have noticed our actions? That shouldn’t be possible." Lu Yang murmured to himself, vexed, as they hadn’t even found the Dragon Ancestor Grass yet, and were already being watched.

In hiding, two members of the Dragon Clan were taken aback.

"Has he discovered us?"

"That’s impossible, right? He’s only at the Mid-stage Nascent Soul, and we, being at the peak of the Divinity Transformation Stage and having specifically cultivated our Spiritual Sense, how could he possibly discover us?"

"Do you think these four are related to the loss of the precious treasure?" After two days of searching, the Dragon Clan in the shadows had already identified several suspects. Among them, Lu Yang and his party were suspected due to the wooden box they carried, and their suspicious behavior put them on the list.

"Hey, did you hear what he just said? He mentioned ’Could the Dragon Clan have noticed our actions,’ it must be them!"

"Don’t get excited, it might just be a coincidence, let’s keep observing," the more level-headed Dragon Clan member restrained his companion.

...

The next day.

"Big brother, it’s not good, the Dragon Clan has started searching the Cave Heavens!" Old Three rushed into the Cave Heaven in a hurry.

They assigned someone to scout the situation each day and to check on the Dragon Clan’s search progress. Today, it was Old Three’s turn.

"Don’t panic, tell me carefully."

"The Dragon Clan has begun searching each Cave Heaven one by one, regardless of Cultivation Level or race; they didn’t let a single one go!"

Big brother frowned, "Have they searched even those in seclusion?"

He had planned to avoid the search by staying in seclusion.

"It’s no use; they’ve broken into all the Cave Heavens that have gone into seclusion in the last three days, except for those who have been secluded for more than three days, then the Dragon Clan wouldn’t enter."

There are records of entry and exit for each Cave Heaven. Those secluded for more than three days hadn’t left the Cave Heaven and couldn’t have stolen the Dragon Ball.

"Trouble."

"Big brother, what trouble? The Dragon Ball isn’t in our possession, they can’t trace it back to us."

Big brother shook his head, "We have no proof of identity, which usually is not a big deal, but during such a critical time, the Long Clan will definitely consider us suspects."

"Considered suspects, how can we transport the coffin then?"

"What should we do?"

Big brother gritted his teeth, "Leave Cave Heaven. If need be, we can hang around the outside world for a few days, the Long Clan wouldn’t possibly check identities on the street."

"Alright."

...

The third day.

"Hard to find," Man Gu sighed. It had been three days.

Suddenly, Lu Yang felt a disturbance in the Dragon’s Blood at his waist. He stared at the four people from Juxuan Island who passed by and sneered, "Found them!"

These four were evidently not subordinates of the black-robed members of the Long Clan, which meant they must’ve killed for plunder, seizing the Dragon Ancestor Grass, but were too afraid of the black-robed Long Clan members to sell it.

"Follow them!"

Lu Yang secretly transmitted his voice, and Meng Jingzhou’s trio’s expressions shook with excitement—they had finally found them.

"Big brother, someone is following us," the second brother transmitted, their expertise being tracking and sneaking as the four thieves of Juxuan Island.

"I’ve sensed it too, but don’t worry, they’re only at the Nascent Soul Stage," big brother said calmly, "They’re from the Human race, so it has nothing to do with the Dragon Ball. Let’s lure them to a deserted place and see what they want."

The four thieves of Juxuan Island weren’t afraid of Lu Yang and his group; it was clear that the big brother had noticed them and was intentionally leading them to a secluded area. Lu Yang and his group were not afraid either.

The eight people met in a quiet spot on the edge of Sea City.

"I should not know you four, so what business might you have?" Big brother coldly regarded Lu Yang and his group.

The closer he got, the more Lu Yang could feel the restlessness of the Dragon’s Blood—it seemed that the Dragon Ancestor Grass was on them.

"You’ve taken something you shouldn’t have. Aren’t you afraid of offending the Elder of the Long Clan?"

Once Lu Yang said this, big brother relaxed by half; the other had said "the Elder of the Long Clan," not "the Long Clan," indicating that this indeed had nothing to do with the Dragon Ball.

"What thing, I’m not aware of it," big brother shook his head. The only thing he carried that could relate to an Elder of the Long Clan was the unidentified grass.

But why should they hand over anything to four Nascent Soul cultivators? Why not just get rid of them and have nothing more to worry about?

"Not aware? Killing members of the Long Clan for wealth and causing harm, and you tell me you’re not aware? Do you take me for a fool?"

"Should I call over the Elder of the Long Clan who’s behind me?"

Big brother’s eyes tightened. If the Elder of the Long Clan got involved, it might expose the affair of the Dragon Ball.

You cannot be spared!

The four thieves of Juxuan Island made their move simultaneously, aiming to instantly take care of Lu Yang and his group.

Lu Yang drew his sword, and Sword Qi burst forth, creating a deep ravine in the ground, his expression deadly serious: "Do you truly wish to make a move?"

"That is something the Old Dragon Emperor is fond of. I advise you to hand it over, and we can all live in peace," he added.

For a moment, both sides were at a standoff.

Lu Yang heard that the Elder of the black-robed Long Clan didn’t want to make a fuss. If they fought with the four opposite them, the commotion might become widely known.

Big brother was deeply alarmed, the earlier Sword Qi was extremely dangerous; the person in front was difficult to deal with, a tough nut to crack. They wouldn’t be able to determine the winner in a short time, and there was no need to fight over an unknown grass here.

They should have never taken that grass in the first place.

Although humiliating, he knew priorities; he took out a wooden box and tossed it to Lu Yang, "Is this it?"

Fairy Eternity was curious about what this Dragon Ancestor Grass was. She scanned it with her Spiritual Sense and suddenly understood.

"I thought the Dragon Ancestor Grass was something special. Xiao Ling had just started gardening but wasn’t skilled. She grew a bunch of weeds, subjecting Lianyi to frequent teasing. Xiao Ling stubbornly claimed she enjoyed growing weeds."

"That Dragon Ancestor Grass is just an ordinary weed from Xiao Ling’s backyard!"

Lu Yang: "..."

I’ve heard nothing, Elder Ao Ling please don’t seek me out.

With Fairy Eternity having spoken, Lu Yang was sure that the wooden box truly contained the Dragon Ancestor Grass. He directly put the small wooden box into another provided by the Elder of the black-robed Long Clan.

Double-layered wooden boxes ensured that no one from the outside could see what was inside—absolutely safe.

Secretly, two members of the Long Clan transmitted messages, somewhat excited.

"Did you hear that? One side wants to deceive the other, and their people have found them."

𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

"Obtained from killing a member of the Long Clan, and it’s something the Old Dragon Emperor likes, it must be the Dragon Ball—they did it!"

"To think there’s an Elder involved!"