“ROAR!!” The Divine Flame of the Sun clung to the wound, constantly burning EkHard’s flesh.
The pain twisted his face, and his eyes turned bloodshot as he screamed in agony.
What surprised Luca slightly was that the guy didn’t say a single word.
“Good, good, good. I love those with some backbone,” Luca suddenly laughed, his smile icy cold. “Come on, tough guy from the Human Race, let me see how many minutes you can hold out in my hands.”
A thread of pitch-black Dreamweaving power appeared at the tip of his finger.
With a casual flick, the Dreamweaving power shot into EkHard’s forehead under his horrified gaze.
Jormungandr’s Dreamweaving power, aside from creating beautiful dreams, had the most terrifying ability to create an endless cycle of nightmares. The problem was that the method of creating these recurring nightmares was so cruel that ordinary people couldn’t withstand such torment, so Luca usually avoided using it.
But this time, it was the perfect tool for the job.
In an instant, EkHard’s eyes lost focus, but his facial expressions changed rapidly—first confusion, then rage and fear, and finally deep, overwhelming despair.
“Scum! A bunch of scum! Get away from me!” He kept waving his hands as if trying to push something away, as if seeing something terrifying.
Soon, his body began to shake violently, and he started rolling on the ground, crying out in a pitiful voice, “Ah!! Stop it! Stop it! You scum! Let me out! I’ll tell you everything! Everything! Just let me go…”
Luca glanced at the time. Less than 20 seconds. Worthless.
He folded his arms, his expression calm. He wasn’t in a hurry to let EkHard off. This trash needed to experience true despair before he would learn to behave.
Eva, watching this scene from the side, turned pale. She couldn’t imagine the kind of torment that could make a Transcendent-level powerhouse so helpless, especially when she thought that she might face the same fate…
Eva’s body trembled violently, her lips pressed tight as she glanced at the young man beside her, wondering if begging for mercy would still work now…
On the other side, Ellie, Elle, and the others watched as the White King, writhing on the ground, wept and begged for mercy. Their scalps went numb, and they couldn’t help but look at Luca with a new sense of awe.
The Mutated Mermen, who had gathered around, didn’t dare make a single move. The commoners stared blankly at their king, feeling a sense of their faith crumbling. Was this still their proud king?
When the king had been writhing and howling in agony for what felt like an eternity, on the verge of mental collapse under the watchful eyes of everyone, Luca finally showed mercy and withdrew the thread of Dreamweaving power from his body.
“Ha…” EkHard lay on the ground, his limbs twitching, gasping for breath like a fish out of water. A foul stench emanated from him as he struggled, his appearance so pitiful that it was hard to believe he was a Transcendent-level powerhouse.
Luca glanced at him, saying, “You have ten seconds. If I don’t get the information I want, you can prepare to stay in the world of nightmares forever.”
At Luca’s words, EkHard, who had been pretending to be dead on the ground, suddenly shuddered. Forgetting his dignity, he panicked and said, “I’ll tell you! I’ll tell you right now! The Celestial Pearl is in the Farlenben palace, with the king!”
So it was here. Luca’s eyes flickered as he asked, “Wasn’t Farlenben sunk? How do we get there?”
EkHard hesitated for a moment, but as soon as he saw another surge of Dreamweaving power gather in Luca’s hand, his face drained of color.
He mournfully said, “It’s not that I don’t want to take you there, but Farlenben is sealed at the bottom of the sea. The only key was stolen by someone from the Barnes family. We can’t get in.”
Barnes? Luca’s understanding deepened. He finally grasped why they had been so obsessed with hunting down members of the Barnes family—it was because they wanted the key to access Farlenben.
Then, a thought suddenly struck him—Levin’s ring and the words he had said at the time.
It seemed that Levin had already known his intentions from the start.
“Where is the entrance to Farlenben? Take us there,” Luca said as he hauled EkHard up from the ground and patted his shoulder. “Trust me, you won’t want to find out what happens if you refuse me.” Read exclusive chapters at empire
EkHard’s face twitched. He obviously didn’t want to lead outsiders to their sacred land, especially since it was clear that the other party was after Farlenben’s treasure.
But the situation was dire. If he didn’t calm this killing machine down, he probably wouldn’t even have a chance to survive.
“The entrance to the seal is at the underwater volcano. I’ll take you there now,” EkHard finally made up his mind. He staggered to his feet and yelled at the Mutated Mermen soldiers who had gathered around, “Didn’t you hear me? Get the hell out of my way!”
The fishmen exchanged glances, some hesitant to speak.
“Your Majesty, the entrance to Farlenben’s seal is our sacred place. How could you bring a group of outsiders there?” A burly fishman stepped forward, glaring at Luca and the others in anger.
He raised his chin and said, “Don’t worry, Your Majesty. Even if you die at their hands, we will avenge you.”
“Avenge me?” EkHard’s face twitched. In the blink of an eye, he appeared in front of the fishman general, slapping him so hard that the man’s head exploded in an instant.
These idiots… Forget whether they could actually avenge him—if they killed him first, what good would revenge do?
Seeing EkHard kill someone, the Mutated Mermen soldiers and the fishman general, who had originally been ready to intervene, all shuddered in unison and dared not show any more signs of discontent.
“Let’s go.” Luca didn’t want to waste any more time on such matters.
EkHard flattered him with an obedient nod, then gave a few authoritative instructions to the Mutated Mermen soldiers before quickly leading them through the palace to a pool at the back.
The pool was about a kilometer in size, carefully arranged, and appeared almost like a sacred basin against the backdrop of white quartz rock. The water within was noticeably different from the black seawater outside; it was a deep, mesmerizing blue, resembling a sea cave.
“This is the entrance to Farlenben.” EkHard seemed to sense Luca’s potential doubt and quickly added, “The territory of Farlenben overlaps with the entire Sea of Mist. The Dead Black Sea was originally the capital of Farlenben.
“After the entire country sank to the bottom of the sea, it was sealed away by the king’s power, leaving only this one entrance. The only problem is that the key was stolen by the Barnes exiles, and to this day, we still can’t return.”
Upon hearing this, everyone understood at last.
No wonder no one had found the ruins of Farlenben after all these years. The only entrance was in the heart of the fishman homeland. Unless one could break through the entire fishman race like Luca, it would have been impossible to find.
After explaining, EkHard leapt into the water and began to lead the way.
Many of those who couldn’t swim looked uneasy. Gavin scratched his head and said, “Lord Luca, I can’t swim. How about we stay up here and guard the entrance for you?”
Other “land dwellers” nodded in agreement.
Luca glanced at them with a somewhat amused expression. “You actually want to swim down? We don’t need you to watch the entrance. It’s actually safer for you to stay up here.”
With that, he waved his hand. Blue water flowed from his fingers, forming a massive water sphere in midair that then surrounded everyone, including Sophia.
The water sphere slowly levitated, seamlessly merging with the surrounding water before gently sinking. The sight of Luca’s water manipulation skill left everyone in awe. Few Superclass-level individuals could manage such a feat.
EkHard was waiting for them underwater. Seeing Luca and the others descend, he wasn’t surprised. Like a fish, he swiftly swam deeper into the sea.
The underwater world was far less dark than they had imagined. The area had been specifically altered, with bright pearls lighting up the surroundings. The pearls were strung together in lines, leading all the way down to the deepest part of the sea.
“It’s beautiful.” Ellie leaned against the water sphere, gazing at the schools of fish and various marine creatures outside, her eyes shining. The others also marveled at the view, whispering in amazement. Such a magnificent sight was beyond the reach of ordinary divers.
Luca, equally intrigued, watched the scene unfold. It felt even more novel than his first trip to an aquarium as a child. No wonder so many people loved diving.
The entrance was deeper than everyone had imagined. After diving for about a thousand meters, they finally saw, at the edge of their vision, a massive glowing gate that stood at least a hundred meters tall.
This gate wasn’t made of any physical material but was instead composed of a radiant, unknown energy. Golden runes were etched across its surface, constantly shifting, flashing, and reconfiguring. Just gazing at it made one feel dizzy and disoriented.
“It’s a divine spell.” Luca immediately recognized what it was. He had seen something similar on the Solar Divine Spear, though this divine spell was clearly much more powerful than the one on the spear.
EkHard pointed at the massive gate behind them and said, “This is the seal entrance to Farlenben. Beyond this door lies the sealed Farlenben. Without the key, you can’t enter. We’ve tried many ways.”
His voice clearly reached everyone’s ears, even under the water, likely aided by some kind of ability.
Luca thought for a moment before stepping out of the water sphere.
A layer of azure light enveloped his body, and the crushing water pressure didn’t seem to affect him at all.
Approaching the glowing gate that stood tall in the sea, he extended his hand.
EkHard didn’t stop him, nor did he even seem to care. As he had said, Farlenben had been sunk for over thirty thousand years. They had tried every method possible, and the final conclusion was clear.
Unless they could find the key from the Barnes family, it was impossible to open it.