153: First time venturing into the vast ocean! The seafood here is huge!

Clouds and mist exploded, and the void hummed.

The moment the heavenly phoenix flying boat, carrying Gu Yang and Feng Ni and pulled by the ten-thousand-zhang Kunpeng, shot out of the Guixu Rift, an unprecedented, moist, salty, and wild-spiritual-energy-filled sea wind blew directly into their faces.

The sunlight here was no longer tempered and gentle like in the Central Continent, filtered through layers of Formations. Instead, it was a primitive, burning crimson-gold. The sea was turbulent, and the waves crashing against the reefs created pressure that could easily flatten mortal steel into pancakes.

"This is... the Desolate Sea?"

Saintess Feng Ni leaned against the ship's railing, her beautiful eyes filled with shock.

She could sense that the gravity here, while not as extreme as at the bottom of the abyss, was still about a hundred times that of the outside world. More importantly, the air was saturated with an extremely rich 'Qi and Blood Origin.' Every wisp of air seemed to carry the roar of primordial Yao Beasts... "A great place, Saintess."

Gu Yang had changed into a neat set of black short clothes, tanned from the hide of some unknown deep-sea beast from the abyss.

His 1.85-meter-tall frame shimmered with a cold, obsidian-like luster under the sun. Though his Physique had shrunk considerably, when he stood on the deck, the entire thousand-zhang-long flying boat tilted slightly toward him.

It was the 'spontaneous gravity' caused by his extreme physical mass.

"The air here... tastes like salted meat when you chew it. I like it."

Gu Yang casually tossed the remaining half of a top-grade spirit crystal into his mouth, crunching it twice before swallowing. His terrifying digestive System, after reaching the Third Turn Middle Stage, had evolved into a sort of 'miniature furnace.' Any high-density energy entering his stomach would instantly be broken down into the most primitive mass particles... In the distance, at the horizon, a magnificent landmass formed by countless interconnected islands appeared.

The islands were massive, some spanning ten thousand li, while others were as small as sharp swords thrust into the vast ocean. Each island was covered with towering ancient trees reaching a thousand zhang high. Occasionally, monstrous birds with wings that blotted out the sky soared past, their piercing shrieks causing ripples in the void.

"That's 'Azure Wave Archipelago,' the outermost supply station among the Ten Thousand Islands of the Desolate Sea."

Saintess Feng Ni pointed ahead and explained softly, "Here, there are only two rules: qi and blood, and fists. The people here don't cultivate the flashy Spells of the Central Continent; they revere primitive plunder."

"Heh, that suits me just fine. I'm a very reasonable person."

Gu Yang hefted his heavy hammer and placed a hand on the Kunpeng's back.

"Big guy, stop. Don't shake their foundation apart."

The ten-thousand-zhang Kunpeng let out an obedient low cry and came to an abrupt halt in a sea area a hundred li away from the archipelago. The resulting giant waves transformed into a hundred-li-long downpour of salty rain... The flying boat slowly docked.

The pier here was entirely constructed from the ribs of some deep-sea leviathan, appearing crude and ferocious.

The moment they docked, Gu Yang felt hundreds of razor-sharp Divine Senses sweep over him.

"Well, look at this tender-skinned Young Master. Which noble family did he run away from? He even brought a pretty little lady with him?"

On the pier, a group of bare-chested men with bronze skin and ferocious sea beast tattoos on their chests gathered around.

The leader was a three-meter-tall brute with mountainous muscles, holding a rusty broad-backed greatsword. His cultivation had clearly reached the Late-stage Spirit Transformation, and his qi and blood intensity far surpassed that of a Spell Cultivator of the same level.

"Entrance fee, three 'Qi and Blood Stones' per person."

The brute blocked their way with his sword, his eyes sweeping over Gu Yang's well-proportioned muscles with a hint of contempt. "Don't try to fool me with those fancy, worthless Spirit Stones from the Central Continent. That stuff here... is only good for lighting a furnace."

...Gu Yang was momentarily stunned.

He glanced around. Although the Cultivators here also used Spiritual Qi, the concentration of qi and blood within their bodies was absurdly high, as if each person had a living volcano stuffed inside them.

"Qi and Blood Stones? I don't have any."

Gu Yang grinned honestly, casually pulling a fingernail-sized, faintly glowing five-colored top-grade Origin Stone from the Central Continent's Holy Land from his Storage Pouch.

"I just swiped this stone from the pockets of some big bosses in the Central Continent's Holy Land. Will this do?"

The moment the Origin Stone appeared, the air on the pier seemed to freeze.

That pure, ultimate Law Origin, though somewhat restrained due to spatial suppression, contained an energy density thousands of times higher than the so-called Qi and Blood Stones here!

"This... this is a top-grade Law Origin Stone?!"

The three-meter-tall brute's pupils contracted sharply, and his hand holding the sword trembled.

In the Central Continent, this was hard currency fought over by Void Refinement Stage powerhouses. Here in the Ten Thousand Islands of the Desolate Sea, this thing was practically equivalent to an atomic bomb that could instantly replenish depleted qi and blood!

"Kid... you actually have such a treasure?"

The gazes of the surrounding men instantly shifted from contempt to greed.

In this lawless zone, showing wealth was synonymous with death.

"Seems like a fat sheep fleeing from the Central Continent..." The brute licked his lips, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. "Kid, I've changed my mind. I want all of those Origin Stones. And that woman behind you, leave her for the brothers to have some fun with. You... can scram."

...Saintess Feng Ni's face instantly turned cold, Sword Qi flickering at her fingertips.

But Gu Yang pressed down on her shoulder.

"Saintess, my dad said not to show off your wealth. But he never said... that after showing it off, you can't also collect the opponent's wages."

Gu Yang unhurriedly put the Origin Stone back in his pocket and took a step forward.

Due to his body's immense mass, this step on the bone pier didn't cause a violent explosion. Instead, it produced an extremely deep, heavy sound, as if a ten-thousand-ton weight was compacting the ground.

"Hummmmm————"

Centered on Gu Yang's foot, the gravitational field within a hundred-meter radius instantly went haywire... "What?!"

The three-meter-tall brute To my horror, I discovered, his body had suddenly become ten thousand times heavier!

The Desolate Sea gravity, which he had been perfectly adapted to, became like thick quicksand in front of Gu Yang. His proud strength was as insignificant as an ant before the spontaneous gravity released by Gu Yang, this 'human-shaped black hole.'

"Brother, that cleaver of yours looks pretty sturdy. Mind if I borrow it to test my aim?"

Gu Yang's words were still hanging in the air.

The next second.

He had already appeared directly in front of the brute.

Without any Mana fluctuation, Gu Yang simply reached out with two fingers and lightly pinched the broad-backed greatsword... *Crack*.

Under the brute's horrified gaze, the thick-backed sword, capable of withstanding Medium Grade Spiritual Artifacts, was snapped off a piece by Gu Yang's two fingers as if breaking a biscuit.

"Too brittle."

Gu Yang sighed and backhanded a slap.

"SMACK!!!"

This slap produced no Palm Wind, not even stirring up much air disturbance.

But the moment it connected with the brute's face, the terrifying physical mass instantly pulverized all the bones in his head. That Late-stage Spirit Transformation Desolate Sea powerhouse flew through the air like a mis-hit baseball, tracing a straight white line before crashing into a distant stone tower, collapsing it.

Due to the extreme impact force, the collapsing tower even created a miniature vacuum implosion... Complete silence fell over the scene.

The previously restless Desolate Sea Cultivators were now gaping, their mouths wide enough to fit a sea demon egg.

Slapping away a Qi and Blood Cultivator of Void Refining level with one hand?

Is this some Young Master from the Central Continent? This is a human-shaped demon dragon!

"Everyone, I'm the newcomer, Iron Ox."

Gu Yang brushed the iron rust off his hands and gave the remaining men an extremely 'friendly' honest grin.

"I'm new here, and my pockets are full of nothing but Origin Stones. I think... the entrance fee is too expensive, unreasonable."

He pointed at the unconscious brute in the rubble, then at the thousand-zhang flying boat behind him.

"So, I've decided... from today, I'm taking over this pier. From now on, anyone who wants to enter the island has to give me one of those Qi and Blood Stones as a sanitation fee. Deal?"

...Silence. Deathly silence.

A few breaths later.

"We obey the Great Commander's orders!!"

The remaining hundred-plus Desolate Sea men dropped to one knee in unison, the sound of their knees hitting the ground Neat and uniform.

In this place, combat power was the ultimate truth. A man who could subdue a Kunpeng and shatter a Spiritual Artifact with one hand—his word was the Law of the island.

"Heh, that's more like it."

Gu Yang looked back at Feng Ni. "See, Saintess? The people here are indeed very polite."

...A short while later, at the island's best tavern—'Sea Demon's Belly.'

Though not as refined as those in the Central Continent, it excelled in wild ingredients.

The table was laden with face-sized 'Deep Sea Giant Crabs,' sizzling roasted 'Eighth-rank Demon Octopus Tentacles,' and jars of primitive, fragrant 'Beast Blood Wine.'

Gu Yang chewed on crab legs, feeling the rich Qi and Blood Origin explode in his stomach, converting into extremely faint but pure evolution points.

"Boss, anything new happening on the island lately?"

Gu Yang asked while eating, casually tossing a tiny fragment of an Origin Stone onto the table.

Though only the size of a grain of rice, the pure Spiritual Pressure emanating from the Origin Stone fragment made the tavern The boss knelt on the ground on the spot, kowtowing repeatedly... "R-reporting to Lord Iron Ox!"

The tavern The boss had a big smile on his face., pointing reverently toward the depths of the archipelago. "In three days, the 'Ten Thousand Islands Alliance' at the center of the Desolate Sea is opening the 'Sea Dragon Battle Sacrifice.' I heard the Alliance Leader discovered a piece of Ore suspected to be a companion to 'Primordial Chaos Qi' and wants to recruit heroes from all over to mine it."

"Primordial Chaos Qi?"

Gu Yang stopped moving, a thick, intense greed flashing in his Dark purple pupils.

That was the most crucial catalyst for the Divine Demon Golden Body Fourth Turn—the 'Rebirth from a Drop of Blood' Realm.

He patted Er Gou, who had just woken up in his embrace. Er Gou's eyes also lit up, drool hanging from the corner of its mouth.

"Chaos Qi... should be pretty smooth to chew, right?"

Gu Yang licked his lips and looked up at the crimson-gold sky.

"Saintess, let's put the wages matter aside for now."

"Let's go first... and claim the 'main course' of this seafood feast."