55: Chapter 55: Once we break in, they'll kneel down on their own.

"From this day forth, the Deep Blue Clan is the legitimate lineage of the Naga!"

"Those Grey Scale bastards are only fit to be our slaves!"

His voice echoed through the sea abyss, making the seawater tremble.

The noble descendants of the Deep Blue Clan cheered, as if they had returned to the glorious era of the Deep Blue Realm.

But the Grey Scale Clan did not yield.

They fled the city, heading toward the areas with the highest concentration of Yin Qi, places where the Deep Blue Clan dared not set foot.

On their path of flight, they lost loved ones, friends, and their homes.

But they did not lose hope.

Because at the very front of that fleeing group, there was a figure.

Silver-grey scales, pale gold eyes, and a thin but upright frame.

Lan.

...

Lan led three thousand seven hundred members of the Grey Scale Clan to the deepest part of the Deep Blue Sea Abyss.

That was the area with the highest concentration of Yin Qi; the seawater had turned completely greyish-white, and visibility was less than ten meters. An ordinary Naga would go mad after staying there for half a shichen and die after three shichen.

But for the Grey Scale Clan, it was safe.

Because they had already adapted to the Yin Qi.

"We will build a new home right here."

Lan stood on a massive black rock, looking at the three thousand seven hundred clansmen before him.

In their eyes, there was fear, sadness, anger, and despair.

But there was also a faint light.

It was the light of wanting to survive.

"Yuan took our home, killed our kin, and imprisoned our king."

"He wants us to be slaves."

"He wants us to live on our knees."

"But I will not kneel."

Lan’s voice wasn't loud, yet it clearly reached the ears of every clansman.

"Will you kneel?"

Silence.

Until the first person spoke.

"I won't kneel."

The second.

"I won't kneel!"

The third.

"I won't kneel!"

The fourth, the fifth, the tenth, the hundredth, the thousandth.

Three thousand seven hundred voices rang out simultaneously:

"We won't kneel!"

Lan looked at his clansmen, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly.

That was the first time he had smiled.

"Then follow me."

"Together, we will survive."

"And then, we will fight our way back."

The Grey Scale Clan began building a new home in that greyish-white sea.

They built houses with yin energy crystal, wove fishing nets with seaweed, and crafted weapons from coral. They learned to breathe, swim, and fight within the Yin Qi.

Lan was in no rush for revenge.

He knew that for three thousand seven hundred clansmen to face Yuan's army of over thirty thousand would be like throwing an egg against a rock.

He was waiting.

Waiting for his clansmen to grow stronger.

Waiting for the time to be ripe.

Waiting for Yuan to make a mistake.

And Yuan did not disappoint him.

After becoming the new king, Yuan began implementing a series of cruel policies.

All members of the Grey Scale Clan were required to wear slave collars. The collars had special runes; if a Grey Scale member tried to resist, the runes would explode, shattering their head.

All Grey Scale members had to work eighteen shichen every day. They were driven to the most dangerous mining areas to extract yin energy crystal; driven to the coldest waters to catch deep-sea fish; driven to the filthiest places to clean the city's sewers.

Any Grey Scale member who dared to resist was executed on the spot. Their bodies were hung at the city entrance as a warning to others.

Any Deep Blue member who dared to help the Grey Scale Clan was also executed. Their bodies were hung alongside those of the Grey Scale members to show 'fairness'.

Yuan's reasoning was:

"These bastards didn't deserve to live in the first place. Letting them live is already a grand mercy."

But the Grey Scale Clan wasn't the only one suffering.

The lower classes of the Deep Blue Clan also began to feel the pressure.

Yuan needed to maintain a massive army, support the noble descendants, and build new palaces and statues. Where would this money come from?

From the bottom.

Taxes doubled.

Corvée labor increased.

Food rations were cut.

The lower-class members of the Deep Blue Clan began to secretly contact the Grey Scale Clan.

They discovered that the bastards they had looked down upon were, in fact, just like them—oppressed people.

They found that the Grey Scale leader named Lan never put on airs and never discriminated against anyone; even for the lowliest Deep Blue beggar, he was willing to stop and listen.

They discovered that the new home built by the Grey Scale Clan, though simple and barren, was a place where everyone was equal, no one was enslaved, and no one was exploited.

Some lower-class Deep Blue members began to secretly flee the city to join Lan.

The first, the second, the tenth, the hundredth.

Yuan found out and was furious.

He ordered the blockade of all passages leading to the Grey Scale territory and sent troops to patrol day and night. Anyone caught trying to flee was executed on the spot.

But the number of people fleeing only grew.

For under tyranny, people's hearts yearn for change.

The four-hundredth year.

Lan's Grey Scale Clan had grown from three thousand seven hundred to twelve thousand.

One-third of them were lower-class Deep Blue members who had joined later.

Lan accepted them all.

No discrimination, no differential treatment, no so-called "bloodline theory."

There was only one standard:

Whether they were willing to fight for freedom.

If they were, they were brothers.

If not, they could leave.

No one left.

Because Lan gave them something Yuan could never provide.

Dignity.

In Lan's camp, there were no nobles, no commoners, and no slaves. Everyone was equal. Everyone worked together, trained together, and shared food. Everyone's opinions were heard, and everyone's difficulties were helped.

Lan never acted like a leader.

He woke up the earliest and went to sleep the latest every day. He personally led the clansmen in fishing, personally taught the youth combat techniques, and personally visited every injured person.

Some clansmen advised him:

"Chief, you are the leader; you shouldn't be doing these menial tasks."

Lan shook his head:

"I am not a leader."

"I am one of you."

"I've just been lucky enough to live a few hundred years longer."

The clansmen fell silent.

Someone whispered softly:

"Following him is worth it."

The four-hundredth year and sixth month.

Lan began his counterattack.

He did not attack Yuan's city directly but instead adopted guerrilla tactics.

Ambushing a patrol today, burning a mine tomorrow, cutting off a supply line the day after.

His people were elusive, striking and then retreating, never lingering in battle.

Yuan's army was exhausted from being run ragged, yet they couldn't catch a single Grey Scale member.

Because Lan knew these waters too well.

He had lived here for four hundred years; he knew every undercurrent, every rock crevice, and every seaweed forest by heart.

More importantly, he gained the support of more and more lower-class Deep Blue members.

Those at the bottom secretly sent food, intelligence, and weapons to Lan's people. They risked execution to help these rebels.

Because they knew that only if Lan won would they have hope.

Yuan's rule became increasingly unstable.

He began to suspect everyone, started massacring anyone under suspicion, and became frenzied and paranoid.

His noble descendants also began to drift away.

Some secretly sent messengers to contact Lan, expressing their willingness to coordinate from the inside.

Lan's clansmen suggested accepting their surrender.

Lan shook his head.

"They don't truly want to help us. They just see that Yuan is nearly finished and want to switch masters."

"What we want is freedom for everyone, not to simply change kings and continue the oppression."

"Let them wait."

"On the day I fight my way in, they will kneel on their own."