"Good day, Your Majesty. I'm calling to discuss the matter of the Dragon Clan troops' next invasion with the Tiger King."

Di Baijun, who was currently seated in the hall, raised an eyebrow and glanced at the room behind her.

​​

Wang Hu was currently using the Life-Giving Pearl in the room, so he mustn't be disturbed at the moment.

However, they had also briefly discussed this just now.

She said straightforwardly, "The King has gone into seclusion and mustn't be interrupted at the moment. Wait for him to come out of seclusion to discuss the matter instead."

At once, Dong Pingtao's brows drew together tightly, and a look of worry surfaced on his countenance.

He didn't have the leisure of worrying over whether the topic was taboo or not anymore. Instead, he asked seriously and sincerely, "Your Majesty, is the Tiger King alright? We have some first-rate pills."

Di Baijun understood right away: the other party thought that the rascal was injured.

She didn't abstain from the topic. Instead, her cool and aloof voice naturally carried a sense of haughtiness.

"How would those worms possibly hurt my husband? They are but deluded. He merely gained some comprehension and needs to go into seclusion for a while."

She didn't sound like she was lying, so Dong Pingtao breathed a sigh of relief.

Should the Tiger King be heavily injured at such a point in time, the consequences would undoubtedly be unthinkable.

To be honest, it was no wonder that he would assume what he had. Anyone who heard that the Tiger King had gone into seclusion after just going through a fierce battle would probably assume that he was injured and was currently in seclusion to treat his injuries.

However, based on how the Tiger Queen sounded and how she had brought up the matter on her own, Dong Pingtao chose to believe her instead.

The Tiger King had purely gone into seclusion to cultivate this time, rather than because of injuries.

After a moment's thought, he nevertheless said tactfully, "That's great. Please feel free to let us know if there's anything you need China to do, Your Majesty."

Indifferent to what he had said, Di Baijun asked dispassionately, "Is there anything else?"

Dong Pingtao hesitated for a moment and replied, "No, there isn't. I'll wait for His Excellency to come out of seclusion before discussing the matter about the Dragon Clan's invasion."

Although he was rather anxious, he would never disturb the Tiger King while he was still in seclusion.

Besides, it was obvious from the Tiger Queen's tone and attitude that she would never give him the chance or the favor to disturb the Tiger King at this point.

Hence, he might as well take the initiative to say that he would discuss the matter when the Tiger King was out of seclusion instead.

The next second after his reply, Dong Pingtao heard a beeping sound on the phone. He couldn't help but be stunned again.

The phone call had ended.

It had ended just like that.

He smiled somewhat wryly. It had been a very, very long time since anyone had treated him like that.

Yet, he couldn't be angry.

He shook his head with a smile as he formed an additional opinion in his mind: the Tiger Queen was far harder to deal with than the Tiger King.

She probably didn't hold much fondness toward humans.

He had better try his best to avoid dealing with her and interact with the Tiger King instead in the future.

After he secretly formed the opinion, Dong Pingtao started to contemplate the upcoming matters again.

With the Tiger King in seclusion, they wouldn't be able to confirm the matter about requesting his help. It was possible that trouble might arise when the time came.

He must inform the various alliances right away. Additionally, he must also urge the others to speed up what they had planned against the Dragon Clan. In the event that the Dragon Clan targeted China again while the Tiger King could not attack…

Countless thoughts flashed across his mind one by one.

While there was no one else around him, he let out a soft sigh. A few seconds later, he masked his exhaustion.

He resumed his usual calm and steady demeanor that seemed like he would never become flustered even if the sky were to fall, and he started to give out various orders.

Soon, the alliances received the news. They formed various thoughts in their minds.

However, the weight upon their hearts similarly became heavier.

In the blink of an eye, all the alliances had received the news. The Dragon Clan troops had indeed returned to the world passage and had set up camp at the seabed nearby.

Unable to do anything about it, they could only wait quietly.

They could only wait for the Dragon Clan's movements and for the Tiger King to come out of seclusion.

In the Tiger King's Cave…

Wang Hu sat cross-legged. In his palm, a cyan-blue pearl was currently giving off wisps of almost-solid gas. They surged into his body through his palm, his nose, and his mouth.

As they surged into him, an even stronger aura started to build up in him.

Little by little, it built up very quickly as though it would go on endlessly.

It was just like a huge dam that was endlessly accumulating torrents of water.

He was becoming stronger with every passing moment.

At the same time…

In the world passage leading to the Dragon Clan's world in the sea, Jin Qiong brought a few golden dragons with him, entered the world passage, and returned to his world.

After conversing with the experts standing guard there, they went straight toward a certain direction.

Half a day later…

In a majestic palace in the sea, Jin Qiong showed up with the other golden dragons and bowed respectfully at the distinguished figure with an extremely powerful aura above.

"Greetings, Father (Dragon King)!"

"How did it go?" The figure at the top asked, his voice filled with imposing might.

His Dao form was big and tall, and he looked middle-aged. He wore golden kingly robes embroidered with dragons and wore a crown atop his head. A pair of golden dragon horns reflected his identity as someone from the Dragon Clan.

"I've let you down, Father. Please take a look at this."

Jin Qiong replied respectfully. Dragon power churned around him after he spoke, displaying everything that had happened in the battle.

The display was vivid and life-like, and the recording also came with audio. It didn't lose out to the video recordings of humans on Earth in any way.

The Dragon King watched quietly without saying anything.

As he watched, he couldn't help but frown. Astonishment and cold displeasure flashed across his countenance. His voice deepened as he said, "To think a tiger like that has actually been born in a small world. How unfathomable.

"As expected, that small world is hiding a big secret."

"Father is right," said Jin Qiong. Upon seeing that his father didn't intend to blame him for the battle outcome, he couldn't help but heave a sigh of relief.

They continued to watch. When they finished watching everything that had taken place in the battle…

The Dragon King narrowed his eyes slightly and said unhurriedly, "He uses Di as his last name, and Zun as his first name.

"Although he's only at the Divine Body Realm, given the situation of the world he's in and his level of combat power, he's good enough.

"You mustn't underestimate him. He's very likely going to be our, the Golden Dragon Clan's, biggest obstacle to conquering that world."

"Understood," replied Jin Qiong and the other dragons right away.

"All of you did nothing wrong. It's just that an unexpected factor like him had popped up and messed up the plan.

"However, from this, one can also tell that that small world really isn't a simple one. It is also connected to many passages leading to other worlds.

"I'll assign another batch of soldiers to you. After entering the world, you can choose to avoid dealing with Di Zun and start with other areas first.

"Also, all of you have slacked off on collecting intel."

His calm and serene voice suddenly became rather dissatisfied. "Why didn't you focus on collecting all kinds of intel when you knew that that world isn't a simple one?"

Jin Qiong and the other dragons immediately hung their heads low, every action of theirs carrying a sense of reverence.

"Please calm your anger, Father. It was my fault," Jin Qiong said respectfully.

The other golden dragons didn't dare to say anything.

"Make sure to collect all kinds of intel when you enter again. Don't disappoint me once more," the dignified Dragon King said.

"Yes. I definitely won't let Father down this time," replied a determined Jin Qiong.

"I'll give you another trump card later. You can use it if you encounter Di Zun or other opponents whom you cannot defeat that are stopping you from invading other alliances.

"However, there's a limit to the number of times this trump card can be used. You must use it prudently." The Dragon King's voice became a few notches sterner.

Overjoyed, Jin Qiong immediately responded affirmatively.

More than an hour later, he brought the other few golden dragons and a 50,000-strong marine species army with him and hastened toward the world passage.

In the blink of an eye, a day had gone by.

On Earth…

In the center of the Dragon Clan army at the world passage…

Jin Qiong and a few dozen other golden dragons had come together.

"Everyone, Di Zun's presence has once again shown that this is no simple world. We mustn't be careless again." Jin Qiong took the initiative to speak.

All the other dragons nodded and verbally concurred with him.

"Alright, before I left, Father ordered that we focus on collecting intel first and make steady progress.

"Why don't we collect more intel and decide which human alliance we should invade first after that?"

Jin Qiong spoke once more.

None of the dragons objected. Soon, their discussion ended.

The numerous Divine Body Realm beings turned invisible and quietly headed toward a few directions.

Before long, through the use of various means, all the human alliances sensed something amiss.

The marine species army seemed to have grown in numbers.

However, because of how strong the Divine Body Realm beings were, coupled with Jin Qiong and the others' cautious behavior; the alliances were unable to find out any information that was more concrete than that.

Three days went by in a rush.

The alliances were still continuously firing nuclear weapons to prevent the alternate worlds from stationing themselves on Earth.

At the same time, their hearts also grew heavier with regard to the Dragon Clan troops quietly stationed there.

It was very evident that the longer the other party stayed quiet, the bigger their agenda would definitely be.

Once they took action, they would become even harder to deal with.

Yet, there was still no news of the Tiger King, whom they had pinned their hopes on, coming out of seclusion.

With various bad news adding up, they couldn't help but feel even more somber.

On this day…

With the alliances unaware, all the Divine Body Realm beings that Jin Qiong had dispatched to collect intel returned.

Jin Qiong and all the other dragons were rather astonished after they compiled all the intel that they had collected.

This world really wasn't a simple one. It definitely housed a huge secret.

In fact, they were glad that they had chosen to collect intel in detail.

After the dragons assembled, Jin Qiong took the initiative and said, "I truly didn't expect this world to be so extraordinary. There are a lot of invaders here. We absolutely mustn't lag behind the others. We must occupy Earth first and find its big secret."

"Yes, that's right."

The dragons echoed him.

"In that case, which human alliance do all of you think we should invade first?" Jin Qiong asked after waiting for the other dragons to finish.

A golden dragon with a calm and steady gaze replied, "Third Prince, the humans have eleven other alliances at the moment. Ji belongs to Di Zun now, so we'll let them off for now.

"China has the most number of abnormalities. It's highly likely that the secret is hidden there.

"However, they are also the strongest. On top of that, their relationship with Di Zun is also the best, with the two neighboring each other. If we direct seawater to flood the lands again, it's very likely that Di Zun will do something.

"Therefore, I feel that we should ignore China for now.

"In which case, the ones nearest to us would be the Russia Alliance and the Japan Alliance."

"Russia covers a vast territory, so it'll be very difficult for us to flood them with seawater. In addition, they are also geographically adjacent to Di Zun. It's very easy for the effects to spill over to him.

"On the other hand, I feel that Japan is the most suitable target.

"Firstly, they are an island nation, so they're the easiest to deal with.

"Secondly, they don't have any nuclear weapons and are the weakest in terms of combat power. We can occupy the place as quickly as possible and get more detailed information from their senior officials before we decide what to do next.

"Thirdly, they aren't far from the world passage. It's just right for us to use it as our military camp in this world after we conquer it."

His clear and logical reasoning made all the dragons, including Jin Qiong, nod as they listened.

Jin Qiong thought for a moment and said seriously, "Jin Yuan is right. Does anyone else have any other opinions?"

None of the dragons spoke.

After waiting for a short while, Jin Qiong officially gave the order. "Alright, in that case, let's form a plan. The troops will set off two hours later and conquer Japan at the fastest speed possible."

"Yes."

Two hours passed very quickly.

Apart from leaving behind a few Divine Body Realms and some Second Realm beings to guard the world passage, the army that numbered hundreds of thousands of soldiers started to move. They moved along the seabed and headed toward Japan.

The alliances received news of their movements very quickly.

All sorts of corresponding deductions also emerged.

China and Russia secretly heaved sighs of relief, while all of Japan's senior officials looked somber and sullen. With extremely awful looks on their countenances, they looked as if they wanted to kill someone.

"Hold an alliance meeting right away." Shina Zobe, Japan's leader, shouted.

"Yes."

Ten minutes later, an alliance meeting was held.

A solemn Shina Zobe immediately said, "Dear leaders, I'm sure all of you already know this, but the Dragon Clan invaders are already on their way to Japan.

"What should we do now?"

He looked at everyone as he spoke, with his gaze stopping at Te Bajing and Dong Pingtao at the end.

Te Bajing glanced at Dong Pingtao who didn't look like he had any intentions to speak. He said contemplatively, "Leader Shina, the most important thing right now is to assemble every country's power, as well as to reach an agreement with the Tiger King."

Shina Zobe nodded repeatedly. Then, he looked at Dong Pingtao.

In his usual calm and unhurried manner, Dong Pingtao said steadily, "You don't have to be anxious, Leader Shina."

A corner of Shina Zobe's eyebrows twitched. How could he possibly not be anxious during times like this?

In his mind, he was even more worried and anxious about something else—surely, China wouldn't make any trouble for them at times like this, right?

Some other leaders had also thought of the same thing.

Everyone knew what the relationship between China and Japan was like.

There was a high chance that they would make trouble and stir up some disturbances at a time like this.

Of course, even though the thought had occurred to them, none of them said anything at the moment.

Given a relationship like theirs, it was very normal for China to make a bit of trouble for them. The current China was qualified to do so.

They weren't concerned either. It would do as long as they didn't make any trouble with regard to important matters.

"Leader Dong, may I know if the Tiger King has come out of seclusion yet? What does he need? Everything is negotiable."

Shina Zobe secretly gritted his teeth and took the initiative to offer himself up to be ripped off.

A grave-looking Dong Pingtao shook his head and replied slowly, "Leader Shina can try and contact the Tiger King himself and see if the Tiger King's come out of seclusion.

"As for what he needs, sorry, I don't know."

Shina Zobe's heart sank even further. The Tiger King hadn't come out of seclusion yet.

With his brows drawn tightly together, he couldn't resist asking, "May I know if the Tiger King is injured?"

Everyone perked up somewhat the moment he popped the question. They stared hard at Dong Pingtao. All of them had been wondering about the same thing. It was just that they couldn't verify it.

Without any change in expression, Dong Pingtao said steadily, "We've also been wondering about that, but we can't be certain. Leader Shina can ask them yourself.

"All of us would also like to know the answer."

Shina Zobe clenched his fists tightly. He wasn't sure if Dong Pingtao really didn't know the answer or if he was deliberately claiming ignorance.

Both possibilities existed.

He made up his mind to give contacting the Tiger King a go immediately after the meeting ended.

He simply didn't believe that they wouldn't be able to befriend the Tiger King, given Japan's capabilities.

He suppressed the thought for now. Then, with a look of sincerity, he asked, "Dear leaders, may I know when the experts from the other alliances would arrive?"