Chapter 554 - 549: Nocturnal City

Chapter 554: Chapter 549: Nocturnal City

In a blur of pursuit and escape, they covered hundreds of miles.

"Hm? Where did they go? How did they just disappear?"

Suddenly, the expert from the Three-headed Snake Clan realized he had lost all sense of the duo. No matter how he swept the area with his Divine Sense, he couldn’t find them.

"Hmph. Mere Earth Martial Realm cultivators. I refuse to believe they can escape my grasp."

As soon as he spoke, the power of his Divine Sense unfurled, blanketing the area and meticulously searching every inch of space. A search this thorough would have detected even a single ant.

After about fifteen minutes, his expression turned utterly grim.

It was as if Ning Jiang and his companion had vanished into thin air, leaving no trace behind.

"Damn it. They got away."

Frustrating as it was, he knew he had lost their trail.

Meanwhile, deep beneath the sea.

Floating above Ning Jiang and Gu Huaying’s heads was a Seven-Colored Pearl the size of an egg. A small, golden dragon coiled within it, giving it an incredibly mysterious appearance.

This was the pearl the Undying Celestial King had asked the Celestial Treasure King to deliver to Ning Jiang. The Celestial Treasure King had once told him this item was a lifeline left behind by the Undying Celestial King.

Ning Jiang had already discovered one of its marvelous uses: with a slight push of energy, it could form a barrier that blocked the probes of another’s Divine Sense.

It was this ability that had allowed Ning Jiang to evade the expert from the Three-headed Snake Clan.

’Judging by the power this pearl has displayed, it should be able to block even a King’s Divine Sense,’ Ning Jiang thought. ’This will give me a better chance of survival during this great upheaval.’

The Undying Celestial King must have foreseen this day, which was why he left him this pearl—to give him an extra edge to survive.

After all, the true danger in this great upheaval came from the killing intent of Kings!

If a King were to hunt him down, that would be a true life-or-death crisis. But with this pearl, even a King would have trouble finding him.

However, Ning Jiang sensed that blocking Divine Sense wasn’t the pearl’s true purpose. Since the Undying Celestial King considered it a lifeline, it must have other, more important abilities!

Of course, he would have to explore its other marvelous uses bit by bit.

"Let’s go."

Once the Heaven-Reaching Realm expert from the Three-headed Snake Clan was gone, they set off, leaving the area behind.

...

The Dark Sea Region lived up to its name. An oppressive darkness hung over it, born from a thick, permanent layer of clouds that choked the sky and blocked all sunlight. The region was perpetually gloomy and deathly still.

WHOOOO!

The mournful sea wind howled like a vengeful ghost, cold and bone-chilling, whipping the sea’s surface into raging waves. The few islands they saw were either completely desolate or scarred beyond recognition.

Any Martial Artist who came to the Dark Sea Region would immediately feel a sense of unease.

"I’ve heard rumors that a heaven-shattering war once took place in the Dark Sea Region. They say it was an ancient battlefield between the Human Race and the Demon Race. That’s why this place is so deathly still, completely different from the other sea regions."

Gu Huaying explained. She had been skeptical of such rumors before, but after truly entering the Dark Sea Region, she immediately felt a different kind of atmosphere.

There was a faint, murderous aura in the air, and even the circulation of Spiritual Qi in her body seemed to slow down slightly.

The mournful sea wind was like the wailing of past spirits, carrying a sense of solemn tragedy.

"There’s no mistaking it. This is indeed a Human Demon Battlefield. Although the Demonic Qi is very faint, I can still sense some of it."

Ning Jiang took a moment to sense his surroundings. As a cultivator of the Heaven-Devouring Demon Skill, his perception of various auras was naturally much sharper than Gu Huaying’s.

The two flew on, finally stopping four hours later.

"Nocturnal City is right below us."

Gu Huaying pointed. Following her slender, jade-like finger, they could see a white light emanating from the depths of the sea beneath them.

"Let’s go."

With a splash, the two of them entered the water and headed down.

The so-called Nocturnal City was a famous city in the Dark Sea Region. It was built deep under the sea and radiated light day and night.

"The expert who built Nocturnal City was a being known as the Pearl King. His original form was a pearl oyster. After thousands of years of arduous cultivation, he finally became a King. The light of Nocturnal City comes from the pearl within his body, a pearl whose light never fades, which is why it’s called Nocturnal City," Gu Huaying explained.

The deeper they went, the more brilliant the light ahead became. After descending for tens of thousands of feet, they finally reached the depths of the ocean floor.

Before them was a giant city. It was magnificent, like an undersea Dragon Palace, and was enveloped on all sides by a barrier of light. This barrier kept the seawater out, preventing Nocturnal City from being submerged.

Suspended in the water above Nocturnal City was a massive pearl. It was as large as a mountain and floated like a small sun, bathing everything in brilliant light.

"The Pearl King owes my father a favor. He once promised that if we ever needed anything, we could find him, and he would definitely repay it," Gu Huaying said.

"Favors aren’t always reliable."

Ning Jiang was more cautious. He and Gu Huaying now had bounties on their heads from both the Other Shore and the Chaos Alliance. Anyone who dared to help them now would immediately offend two major powers!

Faced with these two powers, any King would have to think twice.

After all, even a power as strong as the Dragon God Celestial Palace had been destroyed and was now a thing of the past. With such a cautionary tale before them, who would dare to offend those two?

"I know. Right now, you’re the only person I can trust."

Gu Huaying glanced at Ning Jiang and said, "Don’t worry, I won’t go see the Pearl King. But with the opening of the Myriad Treasures Exquisite Tower imminent, coming to Nocturnal City is a good chance to make some preparations and gather information on recent events."

According to her, with the opening of the Myriad Treasures Exquisite Tower this time, many people would be stopping at Nocturnal City. It had markets and auction houses where one could buy whatever they needed.

Before entering Nocturnal City, they both donned black robes to hide their faces. With hefty bounties on their heads, they naturally couldn’t show their true appearances.

Fortunately, the Martial Artists coming and going in Nocturnal City were mostly from all over the East Sea. The place was a melting pot of all sorts of people, so a getup like theirs was quite common and didn’t attract any attention.

Before long, they entered a tavern.

A place like this, where people from all walks of life gathered, was the most suitable for gathering information.

Ning Jiang and Gu Huaying spent ten thousand Spirit Stones on a private room and sat inside, listening quietly.

For the first two hours, the discussions were mostly about the Chaos Alliance, the Other Shore, and the Dragon God Celestial Palace—things that were already common knowledge.

Then, a specific piece of news came up, and three words within it immediately caught Ning Jiang’s attention!