While returning to the manor, the three of them remained unusually quiet.
Rose carefully held the wooden box containing the five Body-Strengthening Fruits as though it were the most precious treasure in the world.
She still couldn't believe that nearly one hundred gold coins had been spent on them so casually.
Meanwhile, Riven simply walked through the streets, occasionally glancing around the city.
There was nothing particularly interesting. The roads were crowded with people entering and leaving Murong City.
Most carried bows, spears, baskets, ropes, or digging tools.
Nearly all of them were heading toward the forest. Some walked confidently in groups, while others hired experienced hunters as guides.
Many wore newly purchased leather armor, believing it would be enough to protect them from the beasts that had begun returning.
The conversations along the streets all revolved around the same topic.
"I heard another man found a special grass this morning."
"They're saying a hunter discovered another body-strengthening fruit."
"My cousin found nothing yesterday."
"That's because he only searched the outer forest."
"You need to go deeper."
"But wolves have appeared there."
"So what?"
"Fortune favors the brave."
Even knowing that the forest was gradually becoming dangerous once more, people still continued going.
To ordinary mortals, one spiritual fruit could change their fate forever.
Whether by selling it for hundreds of gold coins or consuming it to strengthen themselves.
The temptation was simply too great.
Riven merely listened before looking away.
Soon, they returned to the Millings Manor.
After entering through the gates, Riven walked directly toward the backyard garden.
Rose, however, remained standing where she was.
She looked at the wooden box in her hands before finally calling out, "Brother..."
Riven stopped and turned around.
Rose hesitated for a moment before opening the box slightly.
"What about these body-strengthening fruits?"
"You bought them; shouldn't you keep them?"
Riven glanced at the fruits before calmly replying, "I don't need them. You can use them and give the rest to Grandfather."
With that, he turned around and continued walking toward the garden without another word.
Rose simply stood there as her expression became complicated.
She looked at the wooden box, then at Riven's disappearing figure.
She had originally thought they would split the fruits equally.
Instead, Riven had given every single one to the family without the slightest hesitation.
After standing there for several moments, she finally walked toward the training grounds.
The old master was practicing a simple martial arts stance when Rose arrived.
Seeing her approach with the wooden box, he smiled.
"Didn't you two go into the city? What brings you here so quickly?"
Rose quietly opened the lid.
Five crimson fruits immediately appeared before the old master.
His eyes widened.
"Body-Strengthening Fruits?"
Rose nodded.
"Brother bought them."
"He said I should give them to you."
The old master stared blankly at the fruits.
After learning how much Riven had paid for them, his expression immediately changed.
Nearly one hundred gold coins.
Such an amount was enough to buy several houses inside Murong City.
Without another word, he immediately headed toward the backyard garden.
Riven was quietly watering the flowers when the old master arrived.
He looked at his grandson with a helpless expression.
"Riven. You shouldn't spend money like this. Martial artists can always find another opportunity."
"But cultivation requires countless resources. You should save your wealth for your own cultivation."
"The family has already troubled you enough."
Riven smiled gently.
"There is no need to worry, Grandfather. I already have everything I need for cultivation."
"Those fruits are far more useful to you than to me."
The old master wanted to continue persuading him, but seeing the calm confidence in Riven's eyes, he eventually sighed.
"You truly have grown."
Riven simply smiled without answering.
The old master could only shake his head before carrying the wooden box away.
Perhaps accepting the fruits now would be the best way to avoid wasting his grandson's kindness.
...
Far away, beneath the endless ocean.
An enormous underwater kingdom stretched across the sea floor.
Magnificent coral palaces rose from the seabed.
Towering pillars carved from crystal reflected countless rays of light filtering through the ocean above.
Gigantic sea beasts swam peacefully around the capital while countless aquatic races moved throughout the city.
This was the imperial capital of the Sea Tribes.
Today, the atmosphere inside the imperial palace was unusually heavy.
The Naiad Spirit returned together with the severely injured crab and the serpent.
The moment they entered the capital, the absence of the giant turtle was immediately noticed.
"What happened?"
"Where is Elder Coralback?"
"Why haven't the others returned?"
Questions came from every direction.
Seeing the crab's heavily injured body, everyone realized something serious had occurred.
News quickly spread throughout the palace.
Soon, representatives from the various Sea Tribe clans gathered within the imperial court.
The Naiads.
The Serpent Clan.
The Giant Crab Clan.
The Turtle Clan.
Along with several other powerful sea races.
At the highest throne sat the current Sea Emperor.
His appearance resembled an elderly man, yet his aura alone caused the surrounding seawater to tremble, and beside him stood several Spirit Sovereign experts.
The atmosphere inside the hall was suffocating.
The Turtle Clan's elder stepped forward first.
His voice carried obvious anger.
"Princess."
"Where is Elder Coralback?"
The Naiad woman remained silent.
Instead, the serpent lowered his head.
"The elder..."
"...didn't survive."
The hall instantly erupted.
"What?"
"Impossible!"
"Who could kill a Spirit Sovereign?"
The Turtle Clan elder's killing intent burst forth.
"Explain everything."
Without hiding anything...
The Naiad woman recounted everything that had happened upon reaching Thaloryn.
The ruined city.
The mysterious old cultivator.
The strange white-haired youth.
The inexplicable deaths.
The impossible attacks that somehow struck their own companions.
As she spoke, the expressions of everyone present gradually became increasingly serious.
The Sea Emperor quietly listened without interrupting.
After the story ended, silence filled the court.
Finally, one clan head spoke.
"If humans possess such experts..."
"Perhaps we should temporarily halt our advance."
Another elder nodded.
"We still haven't found the spiritual herb. There is no need to provoke unnecessary enemies."
Before anyone else could speak, the Naiad woman suddenly slammed her fist against the crystal floor.
"Enough!"
Her voice echoed throughout the hall.
"We have already lost one Spirit Sovereign!"
"Are we simply going to retreat?"
She looked toward everyone with burning fury.
"Thaloryn is weak. It doesn't possess powerful sects, and there aren't many Spirit Sovereigns."
"Those two cultivators are exceptions."
"If Father personally leads our armies, we can overwhelm the entire continent."
"Once the humans are destroyed, we can search every mountain and every forest until we find the herb."
Many younger clan leaders immediately nodded.
The proposal was tempting.
The humans of Thaloryn were indeed much weaker than those of Solaryx.
Several discussions immediately broke out throughout the hall.
Some supported an immediate invasion, while others advised caution.
The Sea Emperor remained silent.
Just as the debate intensified, something strange happened.
A faint black symbol slowly appeared upon the Naiad woman's forehead.
At first, no one noticed it.
Then, the symbol spread rapidly across her body like dark veins.
The nearest elder frowned.
"Princess..."
"What is that?"
The Naiad woman herself looked down in confusion.
"I..."
Before she could finish speaking—
BOOM!!
A deafening explosion erupted from her body.
An overwhelming shockwave tore through the imperial hall.
Crystal pillars shattered.
The palace walls cracked.
Several clan leaders were blasted backward.
The Sea Emperor immediately raised a barrier to protect those nearby.
By the time the explosion subsided, silence filled the court.
Everyone stared toward the center of the hall in horror.
The Naiad woman lay motionless upon the shattered floor.
Her robes were soaked in blood.
The cultivation core within her body had been completely destroyed.
Meanwhile, the surrounding elders had only suffered relatively light injuries from the shockwave.
The Sea Emperor instantly appeared beside his daughter.
His spiritual sense swept through her body.
His expression slowly darkened.
Her life had been preserved, but her cultivation was gone.
Completely.
Not even a trace of her spirit sovereign realm remained.
An icy silence descended upon the imperial court as no one understood what had happened.
No one had attacked.
Yet the princess's cultivation had been destroyed before the eyes of every Sea Tribe expert present.
For the first time, even the Sea Emperor felt a chill run through his heart.
Previously, he had thought that they must have been caught off guard or that the princess didn't have much combat experience.
Now, he understood a little of what they must have felt when they fought the humans.
With nothing but desperation and fear, they felt when they couldn't do anything to them.
And even their own attacks were used against them.
So, the idea of invading the land was immediately abandoned.
While all of this happened, Riven was sitting in the garden looking at the sky.
He sighed, "Even after so much, she still wants to invade."
"Nothing can be done here."