A Pack of Opportunists

At that moment, a soft moan sounded from outside as Shui Yuetian slowly opened her eyes. Her mouth tasted a little strange. Then she saw Yu Xian clad in the King of the Abyss Battle Armor and instinctively tried to pull back. Though the King of the Abyss Battle Armor had shrunk down, she couldn't see the face inside and assumed it was Zhi'er. "Shuishui, don't be nervous. It's me, Yu Xian," Yu Xian said quickly. Shui Yuetian was stunned for a moment before crying out in pleasant surprise, "Fish God, did you come to save me?" "Mm. This isn't the place to talk—let's get out of here first." Yu Xian nodded, casting a glance at the colossal ruby to his left before speaking rapidly. He had heard the phoenix's cry, and he had noticed Zhi'er being sucked into Feng Laixian's storage ring. He just hadn't had the time to care about any of that while trying to save Shui Yuetian. Now that Shui Yuetian had revived and regained consciousness, he felt it was best to leave this place of trouble as soon as possible. Yu Xian helped Shui Yuetian to her feet. Just as they turned to leave, butterflies fluttered in from outside one after another, rapidly coalescing into a half-human, half-spider form. "So this is... Helick's Great Trove?" The half-human, half-spider woman stood a full four meters tall. She surveyed her surroundings and spoke slowly, the four eyes on her face coming to rest upon Yu Xian and Shui Yuetian. The completely empty 'treasure vault' instantly made her suspect Yu Xian and Shui Yuetian, assuming the treasures had already fallen into their hands. "Margaret, you'd better leave this place immediately. There is no treasure here... and something feels wrong," Yu Xian said, glancing at her. He guided Shui Yuetian around her to keep moving forward. Margaret-Silk-Insect Whisperer, of the Insect Clan, was a well-known wealthy woman in Crescent Bay and a Star-rank powerhouse. Though Yu Xian didn't know whether she had tracked Zhi'er or followed him here, adhering to the principle that fewer troubles were better than more, he still warned Margaret in the hope that she would evacuate promptly. "Feels wrong? What could be wrong here? If anything is wrong, the only thing not adding up... is probably the two of you," Margaret said leisurely after hearing Yu Xian out. Her massive body shifted, closely tailing Yu Xian and Shui Yuetian before she took a quick stride to block their path, glaring down at them. Yu Xian shielded Shui Yuetian behind him, frowning. "Margaret..." "Squeak, squeak, squeak, squeak! What a coincidence, Margaret! You're here too. It seems fate has truly brought us together." Before Yu Xian could finish speaking, a strange, chittering laugh rang out as a colossal ratman slowly stepped inside. This brute was at least six meters tall, covered head to toe in blue fur that stretched over solid, bulging muscle. Spence, a mutated ratman of the Beastman Clan, was the leader of the Frenzied Devouring Hunting Group—and likewise a Star-rank powerhouse. "Spence!" Seeing Spence, Margaret furrowed her brow, her tone turning grim. The ratmen and the Insect Clan were blood rivals, though it was a rather one-sided feud. Ratmen were the natural predators of the Insect Clan, and in the past, they had fed exclusively on insects—just as the ratmen's own ancient enemies were the Snake Clan, who had once preyed upon ratmen for food. "Squeak, squeak! I have you to thank for getting in here so easily, Margaret. If you hadn't used your Poison Nightmare to incapacitate that long worm outside, slipping in would've taken me quite a bit of effort." Seeing Margaret's sullen face, Spence chittered with smug satisfaction. Although he was confident he could defeat the Extreme Dragon, its resilience was terrifying. Even Violent Auntie had needed a full minute of pounding to kill one; for an ordinary Star-rank powerhouse, slaying an Extreme Dragon would indeed require considerable effort, and fighting it would hold them up for several hours at least. "Couldn't agree more. Margaret, you truly are a saint. Much appreciated." As Spence's words fell, space rippled, and a red-haired man walked in. He first cast a glance at Yu Xian and Shui Yuetian before turning to Margaret with a grin. Margaret hadn't expected so many people to trail behind her. One could only say Crescent Bay had far too many opportunists waiting to swoop in. This red-haired man was Luo Xiao of the Asura royal family, possessing Star-rank strength as well. The Asura royal family mostly bore the surname 'Luo', the most famous among them being Rahu. However, the Asura royal family in Crescent Bay was merely a branch, and Luo Xiao was already the strongest within this branch. Notably, when Yu Xian had earlier obliterated countless warships and vessels with a single punch, the Asura royal family man he had killed happened to be Luo Xiao's son. That was why Luo Xiao had looked at Yu Xian first before turning his gaze to Margaret. Before Luo Xiao took two steps inside, another woman walked in. A pair of goat horns grew atop her head, and a tail trailed behind her. Yet she was not a demon, but a member of the Devil Clan. She was also a prominent figure in Crescent Bay, known as the 'Guarantee Queen', who specialized in providing collateral and contract services to powerhouses. Crescent Bay's flourishing prosperity was largely thanks to her. Then, others trickled in one after another. There was the King of the Stone Clan, known as the Black Boulder; a dragon clan powerhouse bearing the title of Dragon King; human mages... Seeing these people pour in, Yu Xian knew deep down that leaving wouldn't be simple. No matter how he explained it, not a single one of them would believe he hadn't taken anything. *Looks like I have to kill a chicken to warn the monkeys and make an example out of someone!* Yu Xian thought to himself. He whispered to Shui Yuetian, "Shuishui, I'm sending you somewhere. Don't be afraid." Inside the Shell of All Arts, Yu Xian had already asked Zhang Buyao whether others could enter its space. After receiving an affirmative answer, he prepared to send Shui Yuetian inside to temporarily shield her from the impending battle; otherwise, she would be his biggest vulnerability. Before Shui Yuetian could ask anything, Yu Xian sent her into the Shell of All Arts space. The principle was essentially the same as retrieving the Cat Pill from it, which was not difficult for Yu Xian to grasp. The sudden disappearance of a person naturally caught everyone's attention, and all eyes snapped toward Yu Xian. "It seems Your Excellency possesses a space capable of holding living beings. For Helick's treasure vault to be so empty, could it be that you've packed away all the treasure?" Luo Xiao narrowed his eyes, speaking in a drawling cadence. Yu Xian replied coldly, "Think whatever you like. I'll warn you one last time: something is wrong here, and it is extremely dangerous. If you don't want to die, leave immediately. Furthermore... anyone who stands in my way dies." With that, he couldn't be bothered with this pack of opportunists and turned to walk straight out. A smile lingered on Luo Xiao's face as a glint of crimson flashed through his eyes. The next moment, a suit of red armor inscribed with intricate patterns materialized over his body, while an exaggeratedly shaped broadsword snapped into his grip. Without hesitation, he slashed clean and hard toward Yu Xian. The instant Luo Xiao attacked, the other Star-rank powerhouses acted in unspoken coordination, unleashing their strikes toward Yu Xian all at once. *Die!* Dense clusters of sharp spikes sprouted from Margaret's back and shot forward in unison. Though the ratman was Margaret's mortal enemy, at this moment he stood right beside her, attacking Yu Xian as his right hand morphed into a colossal cannon muzzle and blasted at Yu Xian. In an instant, Yu Xian was engulfed in a deluge of multicolored attacks.