44: succeed

Gao De led the Demon Soldiers through the dark waterway at high speed. The Demon Soldier Formation minimized the team's presence, making them like a true undercurrent.

He pushed his [Breath Concealment] talent to the limit, not only restraining all auras of himself and the Demon Soldiers but even skillfully smoothing out the water disturbances caused by their swimming.

They were like a group of true ghosts, silently gliding past water grass, reefs, and shipwrecks.

His Divine Sense scanned ahead with unprecedented precision, not missing any clues.

Gao De's brain worked rapidly, combining the limited intelligence provided by Turtle Three Thousand with his own knowledge of Lake's hydrology to quickly judge the most likely secret paths the Zhu Family's grandson would choose.

The northern waters where the remnants of Demon King Fushui's forces were entrenched were not small. The other party, fleeing in haste, would inevitably choose the most familiar and relatively safe routes.

The underwater route chosen by the Zhu Family's escaping team was clearly meticulously designed, winding and twisting to avoid common aquatic nests and dangerous areas. However, for Gao De, who possessed powerful Divine Sense and a Dragon Clan Bloodline sensitive to water breath, tracking was not difficult.

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"Divide into three groups, search forward in a fan shape, maintain Divine Sense contact, and report any traces immediately. Do not alert the enemy!" Gao De ordered decisively.

Dozens of Demon Soldiers immediately split into three small teams, spreading forward silently like a cast net.

Time passed minute by minute. The underwater world remained silent, with only the faint rumbling from the direction of Zhu Family Fort in the distance, hinting at the brutality of that battlefield.

Suddenly, the team responsible for searching the left area sent a weak ripple through Divine Sense—they had found something!

Gao De's spirits rose, and he immediately led the other two teams to close in.

At the edge of a giant Ink Algae thicket as dense as a forest, they found their target.

Three Cultivators were using a shuttle-shaped Magical Artifact emitting a faint blue light, cautiously sneaking north under the cover of the Ink Algae.

The leader was a pale-faced Middle-aged Cultivator with a look of panic. His cultivation was around the Late Stage of Qi Refining; he must be the Zhu Family Old Ancestor's grandson.

He was followed by two elderly servants of considerable age with cultivation at the Middle Stage of Qi Refining. One controlled the shuttle-shaped Magical Artifact, while the other looked around vigilantly.

What attracted Gao De's gaze most was the jade box the Middle-aged Cultivator held tightly in his arms, wrapped in layers of special Talisman paper, yet still emitting faint life fluctuations and a trace of pure Flood dragon blood aura!

The giant salamander spirit egg was inside!

"It really is here!" A cold light flashed in Gao De's eyes. The other party was clearly extremely cautious, and the route they chose was indeed hidden. If he hadn't judged in advance and spread the net to search, they might have slipped past him.

"Prepare to move!" Gao De ordered via Divine Sense. "Finish it quickly. The primary goal is to seize the jade box! Kill those two old servants without exception! As for that Zhu Family brat... try to keep him alive; he might be useful."

He could see that this escaping team was already like startled birds. Their highest strength was only two Late Stage Qi Refining old servants. To his team of full Demon Soldiers and himself as a Second Tier Mid-stage backbone, they posed no great threat.

Like a venomous snake waiting to strike, Gao De slowly adjusted his position, choosing a relatively open area in the Ink Algae thicket, suitable for an ambush, as the attack site.

As the shuttle-shaped Magical Artifact slowly entered the designated area—

"Attack! Finish it quickly!" Gao De gave the attack command without hesitation.

He knew he had to resolve the battle quickly. If it dragged on and attracted the attention of Demon King Fushui's remnants, it would be troublesome.

Dozens of Demon Soldiers received the order and instantly dispersed, darting out from the dense water grass like ghosts, following the combined attack Formation they practiced daily.

They were well-trained, in groups of five, pouncing on the two old servants respectively. Other Demon Soldiers cruised on the periphery to prevent the targets from escaping or sending distress signals. The newly promoted Second Tier Green Shell Shrimp Soldier even brandished its hideous double claws, heading straight for the old servant controlling the artifact!

Demonic Qi erupted as water blades, ice spikes, and pincer strikes poured out like a violent storm!

"Enemy attack!!" The two old servants reacted quickly. Their expressions changed drastically as spiritual light flashed on their bodies, and they sacrificed defensive Magical Artifacts and offensive Talismans!

But their cultivation was low after all, and they were fighting in a hurry. They were instantly suppressed by several well-trained and well-coordinated rank one Peak Demon Soldiers, including the main attack from that newly promoted Second Tier Green Shell Shrimp Soldier.

Gao De shouted coldly in his heart, his figure bursting forth like black lightning! The [Water Control Art] controlled the surrounding water to solidify instantly, forming a powerful binding force that shrouded the shuttle-shaped Magical Artifact!

Boom! Crack!

Under the impact of Gao De's powerful Demonic Power and the interference of [Unicorn Law-Breaking], the shield on the surface of the shuttle-shaped Magical Artifact instantly shattered! The water binding force was like invisible shackles, causing the movements of the two old servants to suddenly stiffen!

Though startled, the two old servants were not in chaos, clearly having been mentally prepared. With a roar, they sacrificed a small turtle shell shield and a water-parting thorn, struggling to resist.

Puchi! Puchi!

Almost simultaneously, several attacks from the Demon Soldiers had already landed!

The protective Magical Artifact of one old servant was smashed by the full force of the Green Shell Shrimp Soldier's pincer, its spiritual light dimming. The other old servant was instantly submerged by the water blades and ice spikes of several other Demon Soldiers!

The battle broke out quickly and ended even faster!

While the two Middle Stage Qi Refining old servants resisted desperately but were already powerless to fight back, Gao De's goal from beginning to end was only one—Zhu Mingxuan, who was holding the jade box containing the spirit egg!

The moment the Demon Soldiers moved, Gao De's main body was already like a bolt of black lightning tearing through the waves, pouncing straight at Zhu Mingxuan!

He didn't use a large-scale Water Control Art, fearing he might accidentally damage the spirit egg. Instead, he condensed Demonic Power onto his newly grown Dragon claws and lunged with one claw, aiming straight for the other's chest, intending to kill with one blow and seize the spirit egg!

"You beast, how dare you!" Zhu Mingxuan was startled but not panicked, a look of ruthlessness flashing in his eyes.

As a Zhu Family Genius, he was by no means mediocre. His spiritual power suddenly erupted, and a scorching fire ring abruptly expanded outward with him as the center!

"A Fire-element Cultivation Technique?" Gao De was slightly surprised. Using fire magic underwater greatly reduced its effectiveness, but the other party clearly couldn't care about that.

The temperature of this fire ring was extremely high, instantly evaporating the surrounding lake water and producing a large number of bubbles, disrupting vision and perception.

Meanwhile, Zhu Mingxuan's empty left hand quickly formed a seal, and a small sword Talisman emitting Sharp Metal Qi shot out. It grew as it met the wind, turning into a golden sword light that pierced straight toward Gao De's face!

He himself used the impact and recoil of the fire ring to retreat rapidly while holding the spirit egg, attempting to pull away.

"Trivial tricks!" Gao De snorted coldly. The unicorn horn on his head flashed with a faint light as the [Unicorn Law-Breaking] effect activated. The golden sword light actually trembled slightly as it approached him, its spiritual light dimming by thirty percent!

His lunging Dragon claw didn't slow down, directly tearing through the weakened sword light. The claw wind was sharp, still enveloping Zhu Mingxuan.

Zhu Mingxuan's face turned pale. He clearly hadn't expected his Talisman to be broken so easily.

He gritted his teeth, seemingly having made a certain decision. He suddenly bit the tip of his tongue and spat a mouthful of Essence Blood onto the jade box in his arms!

Buzz!

Stimulated by the Essence Blood, the mottled patterns on the surface of the giant salamander spirit egg in the jade box suddenly lit up. A Dragon pressure far stronger than before, mixed with a violent protective will, erupted, forming a pale gold, semi-transparent light shield that protected Zhu Mingxuan along with the spirit egg!

Gao De's Dragon claw struck the light shield heavily, letting out a dull, thunderous boom!

The light shield shook violently, and fierce ripples surged, but it did not shatter immediately!

"Hmm? Using his own Essence Blood to stimulate the spirit egg's potential, combined with the Formation carved on the jade box, to form a protection?" A trace of surprise flashed in Gao De's eyes. This Zhu Family kid was ruthless enough to himself and valued this spirit egg extremely highly.

The strength of this protective light shield was impressive, comparable to the defense of an Early Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator.

"Let's see how long you can last!" Gao De didn't want to delay. Demonic Power surged within his body, the dark light on his Dragon claws grew even more intense, and he struck down heavily again!

At the same time, with a thought, the faint blue electric light on the unicorn horn on his head jumped again!

Crackle!

A blue arc as thin as a hair, yet containing the most masculine and upright evil-breaking Power of Thunder, darted out like a spirit snake and hit the pale gold light shield!

Sizzle!

The Power of Thunder seemed to have an extra destructive effect on this kind of energy shield. The light shield flickered violently, its color instantly dimming by more than half!

Zhu Mingxuan groaned, a trace of blood overflowing from the corner of his mouth. Clearly, his mind was connected to the light shield, and he suffered a backlash.

Despair finally appeared in his eyes. The opponent's strength far exceeded his imagination. Not only was he incredibly strong, but he even mastered the rare Power of Thunder!

On the other side, accompanied by two short screams, those two loyal old servants had already perished under the siege of the Demon Soldiers.

After the Demon Soldiers finished off their opponents, they immediately gathered around, blocking all of Zhu Mingxuan's paths of retreat.

Holding the spirit egg, Zhu Mingxuan leaned against a giant reef on the lake bottom. His face was pale as he watched Gao De slowly approach, emitting terrifying Dragon pressure and killing intent. He knew he had fallen into a desperate situation.

Gao De's cold vertical pupils stared at Zhu Mingxuan and the jade box in his arms containing the spirit egg that emitted an alluring aura. His Dragon claw was slightly raised, ready to strike.

This spirit egg was already in his pocket.

A moment later.

Gao De's sharp claws were already like iron hoops, gripping Zhu Mingxuan's neck, while his other claw easily snatched the jade box emitting the alluring aura from his arms!

From the sudden attack to the end, only five or six breaths of time had passed.

Silence returned to the lake bottom, with only the slowly spreading smell of blood and floating fragments of Magical Artifacts proving that a short and fatal encounter had just taken place.

Gao De didn't even look at the ash-faced, trembling Zhu Mingxuan. He directly used a surge of Demonic Power to seal his Dantian and Divine Sense, then threw him to a Demon Soldier to guard.

All of his attention fell on the jade box in his claws.

Through the Talisman paper, he could clearly feel the vigorous vitality and pure dragon blood power of the spirit egg inside!

"Success!" Even with Gao De's Heart-Nature, he couldn't help but feel a surge of wild joy at this moment.

Without the slightest hesitation, he immediately ordered: "Clean up the traces and return to the Water Mansion at full speed!"

The Demon Soldiers moved quickly, erasing the battle traces as much as possible, then escorted Gao De and the prisoner, following the same secret route they came by, silently disappearing into the deep water.

Behind them, the battlefield between the Lin Family and the Zhu Family was still noisy, but all of this no longer had anything to do with Gao De.

Carrying the greatest harvest of this trip—the giant salamander spirit egg that concerned the next step of his path to dragon transformation—he embarked on his return journey.

This time, he was the true winner.