Inside the desert ruin.
Whoosh—whoosh—whoosh.
One figure after another appeared.
Immediately afterward—
A burst of wildly excited laughter rang out.
"Hahahahahahahahaha!!!"
The Third Boss of the Black Shark Pirates stared at the massive pile of spiritual herbs and medicines at the ruin's entrance, his entire body trembling with excitement.
He threw his head back and laughed loudly.
His face flushed red!
So excited that he could barely form words!
"Fifth-tier, sixth-tier, seventh-tier… hiss!"
Staring at the mountain-like pile of herbs, his face glowing with excitement, he suddenly sucked in a sharp breath.
"There's even an eighth-tier spiritual herb! This is far more than twenty billion—far more than twenty billion! This is worth at least thirty to forty billion!"
And it wasn't just him.
Every single Black Shark Pirate present wore the same flushed expression.
Every face was filled with wild joy.
Excitement!
Elation!
This was the Endless Sea.
A place filled with countless ruins.
A place where spiritual herbs were everywhere.
But—
For them—
Thirty to forty billion was already an astronomical sum.
After all—
The so-called Black Shark Pirates might sound impressive.
But in reality, they weren't.
That much was obvious just by looking at their Third Boss's strength.
He was only a seventh-tier cultivator.
The remaining twenty to thirty lackeys averaged around fifth or sixth tier.
And the Endless Sea?
It was a place where seventh-tiers were as common as dogs, and eighth-tiers walked everywhere.
So it was clear—
This so-called Black Shark Pirates was nothing more than a very ordinary small-time faction in the Endless Sea.
Definitely not something noteworthy.
And certainly not an official organization of any nation.
After all—
Official organizations weren't this weak.
Nor would any official force ever form a "pirate crew."
After reveling for quite some time, the Black Shark Pirates gradually calmed down.
Once he regained his composure, the Third Boss's expression hardened.
He frowned.
After a brief moment of thought, he suddenly shouted,
"Move! Move! Move! What are you idiots standing around for?! Get to work! Carry everything onto the ships!"
"Yes!"
"Yes, Third Boss!"
The pirates snapped out of it.
Immediately—
With flushed faces and frantic movements, they rushed forward, scrambling to haul away the massive pile of spiritual herbs at the ruin's entrance.
Under their enthusiastic looting—
In no time at all, the pile that had resembled a small hill was completely cleared out.
While directing his men to transport the herbs, the Third Boss also dispatched several subordinates to conduct a deep exploration of the desert ruin.
"Well?" he asked one of the scouts who had returned. "What's the situation?"
"Re-reporting—pant—Third Boss… it's endless—pant—the ruin is endless! There's no sign of the end! It's almost certainly a large-scale ruin! And we haven't found anyone inside yet!"
"So I suspect the person who discovered and passed the ruin trial is still inside the trial space. They were probably seriously injured during the trial and are recovering inside!"
The scout hurriedly reported.
"What about the ruin's tier?" the Third Boss asked.
"It's still unclear. We ran deep into the ruin for quite a while and didn't encounter any living ruin creatures. But based on the large number of desert statue corpses we found, most of which were only fourth-tier—and even many third-tier—it should be a mid-tier ruin."
"A mid-tier ruin?!"
The Third Boss's expression changed instantly.
His face flushed red, his breathing became rapid, and he stared wide-eyed.
"Are you sure?! You're absolutely sure this is only a mid-tier ruin?!"
"Yes, Third Boss. There shouldn't be any mistake. The desert statue corpses were all around third or fourth tier."
The moment those words fell—
The Third Boss's breathing grew heavy.
"Huff… huff… huff…"
Ecstasy filled his face.
What did a mid-tier ruin mean?
It meant that someone like him—a high-tier cultivator—normally wouldn't be able to enter.
Because the ruin's rules would repel him.
However—
That wasn't absolute.
Because spatial-type ruins were different.
Whether low-tier or mid-tier, high-tier cultivators could freely enter and exit them.
Which meant—
This vast desert ruin was a spatial-type ruin.
No wonder the Third Boss was so ecstatic.
Spatial ruins were priceless.
Even the smallest one—barely the size of a single room—could sell for over ten billion.
A slightly larger one, the size of a house, could go for twenty or thirty billion.
If it was as large as an island—
It could easily exceed a hundred billion.
Anything bigger?
Completely priceless.
"Quick! Quick! Quick!"
Overwhelmed with excitement, the Third Boss suddenly shouted,
"Go back! Hurry and report this to the First Boss and Second Boss! Have them bring everyone over! Our Black Shark Pirates are about to strike it rich!"
"Yes!"
The lackeys also fully understood the value of this massive spatial-type desert ruin.
With flushed faces, they rushed out of the ruin one after another.
Not long after—
One of the Black Shark Pirate ships hoisted its sails and hurriedly departed.
All of this—
Zhao Xuan knew nothing about.
At this very moment—
He was still inside the narrow hidden ruin space, recovering his mental energy.
He had no idea that the spiritual herbs he had painstakingly accumulated had already been completely looted.
Time passed quietly.
Roughly two hours later—
"Huff…"
A soft exhalation echoed in the narrow ruin space.
Zhao Xuan slowly opened his eyes.
Clear-headed and refreshed.
"That should do it. My mental energy is fully restored. Time to head out."
Zhao Xuan stood up.
He plucked the remaining four mental-energy fruits from the tree, glanced at the mountain-goat giant beast cowering motionlessly in the corner, and willed it—
Instantly!
The closed ruin entrance opened.
At the same time—
Outside the ruin.
On the small hill.
Seven or eight fifth- and sixth-tier Black Shark Pirates were guarding the desert ruin entrance under the Third Boss's orders.
Suddenly—
One of them seemed to notice something.
He rubbed his eyes.
Then—
He shouted in disbelief.
"N-New—new—new… a new ruin entrance! Another one! There's another ruin entrance!"
The moment those words rang out—
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
The remaining pirates all turned their heads toward where he was pointing.
And then—
They saw Zhao Xuan emerging from the narrow hidden ruin.
Their gazes met.
"What's going on?"
"Who is this guy?"
Zhao Xuan froze for a moment.
But unlike him—
The seven Black Shark Pirates suddenly burst into ecstatic smiles.
"Hahahahahahaha!"
"Fourth-tier! He's only fourth-tier!"
"Just a fourth-tier brat!"
Their triumphant shouts echoed one after another.
At that moment—
Zhao Xuan reacted as well.
Looking at the desert ruin entrance beside them, his expression changed instantly.
Only then did he belatedly remember—
When he left the desert ruin earlier, he had forgotten to close the entrance.
"This is bad!"
Zhao Xuan's face darkened instantly.
"They definitely know now that the desert ruin is a spatial-type ruin!"
Zhao Xuan knew very well how valuable that space ruin was.
Even though the highest-grade herbs inside only reached fifth tier—
It didn't matter.
Because it was a spatial ruin.
And its space was vast beyond imagination.
If he chose to sell it—
It could fetch hundreds of billions.
Wealth stirred greed.
Sometimes—
Even blood relatives would turn against each other over mere millions.
Let alone hundreds of billions.
"Kill them all."
Those four words surfaced instantly in Zhao Xuan's mind.
He had never been soft-hearted.
Because he knew—
If he spared them today, and news of his possession of a massive spatial ruin spread—
He would never know peace again.
Hundreds of billions—
That was a sum that even ninth-tier Emperors would covet.
However—
Before Zhao Xuan could act—
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The seven pirates struck first.
Two charged straight at him from left and right.
The remaining five spread out rapidly, clearly trying to prevent his escape.
"Seeking death!"
Zhao Xuan laughed.
A cold, merciless laugh.
With a roar, he instantly entered his Dragon-Man form.
A terrifying pressure swept over the battlefield.
The dragon might of the Azure Dragon Fruit combined with Conqueror's Haki—
In an instant—
The seven fifth- and sixth-tier pirates felt as if a mountain had been placed on their shoulders.
Three of the fifth-tier pirates staggered and collapsed to their knees.
Boom! Boom!
Before they could recover—
Two deafening sonic booms rang out.
Pop! Pop!
The heads of the two pirates who had charged first exploded instantly.
Tap. Tap.
In the next moment—
Zhao Xuan appeared in front of another pirate.
Boom!
One punch.
His head burst apart.
Without slowing down—
Zhao Xuan flashed forward again.
"Ha!!!"
A sweeping Tempest Kick!
Pff! Pff!
Crack—crack!
Blood sprayed everywhere.
Bones shattered loudly.
The two pirates were sent flying like soccer balls.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
They crashed through dozens of trees before finally stopping.
At this moment—
Zhao Xuan had already reached the sixth pirate.
Boom!
One punch.
Just one punch.
Crack!
The terrifying force punched straight through his chest.
Ribs shattered.
Heart exploded.
A gaping hole appeared in his torso.
All of this—
Happened in an instant.
Not even three seconds had passed.
"H-How… how is this possible…?!"
Only one pirate remained.
A sixth-tier lackey.
By now, he was completely terrified.
As Zhao Xuan advanced step by step—
He trembled backward.
Staggered.
Then collapsed onto the ground.
"N-No… don't come closer… please don't come closer…"
His face was pale, eyes filled with terror, words incoherent.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Zhao Xuan walked up to him.
He reached out—
Grabbed him by the neck—
And lifted him up.
"Talk. Who are you?"
"N-No… d-don't… don't come near… monster… demon… you demon…"
The pirate had completely lost his sanity.
"Hmph. Trash."
Zhao Xuan snorted.
He slammed him to the ground.
Boom!
Then—
Boom!!!
He stomped down.
Crack!
Bones shattered.
The final pirate died.
Zhao Xuan turned toward the desert ruin entrance.
His brows furrowed.
After a brief silence—
His gaze dropped to the ground.
He examined the dense footprints carefully.
"There are definitely more than seven of them. At least fifty or sixty. The rest must still be inside the ruin. I just don't know if there are high-tier cultivators among them."
After a moment's thought, Zhao Xuan strode toward the ruin entrance.
"If they left guards outside, the people inside probably aren't very alert. Even if there's a high-tier cultivator, I should still be able to escape."
With that—
Zhao Xuan swiftly exited his Dragon-Man form and returned to his human appearance.
Taking a deep breath—
He stepped into the desert ruin.
Why revert to human form instead of staying in Dragon-Man form?
There was only one reason.
Feign weakness.
To lower the enemy's guard.
At the ruin entrance—
The Third Boss of the Black Shark Pirates stood with seven or eight lackeys, waiting for news from the scouts.
Suddenly—
He sensed something.
He turned sharply toward the entrance.
And saw Zhao Xuan walking in.
"Fourth-tier?"
Sensing Zhao Xuan's weak aura, a cruel grin spread across the Third Boss's face.
He threw his head back and laughed loudly.
"Hahahahaha! Just as I guessed! Anyone who needs three or four hours to recover after clearing a mid-tier ruin can't possibly be strong!"
"Hahahaha!"
"The Third Boss is wise!"
The surrounding pirates laughed along.
Rustle, rustle, rustle.
Amid the laughter—
The Third Boss stepped forward.
Grinning viciously, he approached Zhao Xuan.
"Kid! Why don't you obediently hand over the ruin core? If you do, I might let you die a little faster. Otherwise—"
Before he could finish—
Before the last word left his mouth—
"ROAR!!!"
A terrifying roar exploded through the air.
Zhao Xuan instantly transformed.
BOOM!!!!
A fist wrapped in Armament Haki and raging lightning smashed forward.
Caught completely off guard—
The Third Boss was struck square in the chest.
PFFFT!!!
Blood sprayed as he was blasted backward.
Tap!
Before he could hit the ground—
Zhao Xuan used Shave and appeared in front of him.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Punch after punch—
Relentless.
Frenzied.
All-out.
In the blink of an eye, Zhao Xuan had unleashed over twenty punches.
Zhao Xuan might only be fourth-tier—
But he had already killed a seventh-tier before.
Just last night.
And back then—
He hadn't even developed Iron Body's derivative ability yet.
Now—
He had.
His full-power punches were at least twenty percent stronger than before.
What did that mean?
It meant—
Even alone—
He could already seriously injure a seventh-tier.
And this was against someone who was completely unprepared.
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