"We're here." The taxi stopped, and the driver glanced at the pair sitting in the backseat through his rearview mirror.

The woman was really beautiful, and there was a cold and heroic disposition about her that none of the girls who grew up in seaside cities possessed. As for the young man, his looks were rather ordinary, but his eyes left one with a really deep impression.

Long Yuxue paid the driver, and Tang Wulin got out of the car first before casting his gaze out toward the boundless ocean.

Long Yuxue got out of the car on the other side before making her way over to him.

At this moment, the driver suddenly poked his head out of the window, and yelled, "Lemme give you some advice, young man: you gotta be the one to take the initiative and resolve a lover's quarrel. Women have to be sweet-talked and pampered, haha."

After that, he stepped on the gas, and the taxi raced away.

Tang Wulin faltered momentarily before turning to look at Long Yuxue.

Long Yuxue blushed slightly in response. "You didn't say anything to me the entire ride, so he must've misread the situation."

Tang Wulin scratched his head in an awkward manner, and for some reason, Long Yuxue couldn't help but burst into laughter at the sight of his discomfort. Why was it that he was still so attractive to her even though he was in disguise? Could it really be because he was already imprinted too deeply in her heart?

"I grew up by the sea, so I've always had a soft spot for seaside cities, and Skysea City is the largest city on our east coast. I once participated in a competition here, and that was where I met Xinglan and Lizhi for the first time. They were representatives of Shrek Academy, and at the time, Xinglan was really powerful!"

"Are those two part of your Shrek’s Seven Monsters?" Long Yuxue had only met Shrek’s Seven Monsters on several occasions and wasn't very familiar with them.

Tang Wulin nodded in response. "It's been almost 10 years since then; time sure passes quickly."

"Oi, you're only in your early twenties; don't make yourself sound like an old geezer."

Tang Wulin chuckled, "Isn't this a sign of maturity? Look over there; that's the renowned port of Skysea City, and its the largest port on the east coast. It's also the reason why Skysea City was able to flourish to become what it is today. However, a very large section of it has now been expropriated to be used as a military port. Not long after this, an invasive war is going to be instigated here."

Long Yuxue observed, "You seem to be very much against the idea of war."

Tang Wulin nodded in response. "Many people will perish in a war. Many children will become orphans, and even more people will lose their loved ones. War is waged purely for profit, but these profits come at the expense of countless lives; how cruel is that? You're right; I detest war, and I abhor dictatorships. Back when I was still a small child, my parents were abducted by a certain power and forced to work for them, and I still don't know where they are to this very day.

"Back then, I really wanted to become a Soul Master, but part of the reason behind how I was able to become who I am today is that I was forced to become more powerful by the absence of my parents. The federation has always championed equality and freedom, but in reality, equality and freedom have never appeared in this world."

Long Yuxue asked, "What do you want this world to be like?"

A wry smile appeared on Tang Wulin's face. "Truth be told, I have no answer to that question. I don't have any grand aspirations; I just want to alleviate the pain of as many people as possible."

Long Yuxue encouraged, "You've already done very well. If it weren't for your efforts during that last invasion from the abyssal plane, our Blood God Legion could have already been overwhelmed. If you hadn't stopped them, the abyssal plane army could be wreaking havoc on this continent as we speak, and that would truly be a calamitous disaster. No one else knows about this, but everyone in the Blood God Legion knows that you're a hero who saved the entire federation."

Tang Wulin chuckled, "I don't care if I'm a hero or not. I only have a few wishes; I want to find my parents, then rebuild Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect headquarters, and after that..."

"What comes after that?" Long Yuxue could already guess his answer, but she still couldn't help but raise this question, and she regretted it as soon as the words escaped from her mouth.

"After that, I want to have a home with her." A gentle look appeared in Tang Wulin's eyes. Indeed, all he really wanted was to have a home; that was his biggest dream. He wanted to be able to live with his lover and his parents, and even his future children.

A film of tears instantly appeared in Long Yuxue's eyes in response to Tang Wulin's frail expression. Never did she think that he would have such a vulnerable side, and strangely enough, there was no envy in her heart whatsoever; all she felt was sympathy for him.

She stepped forward and gave him a tight hug. In this moment, all she could do was give him her warmth and support. She really wanted to tell him that if that person couldn't give him a home, she would be more than willing to.

Tang Wulin was slightly taken aback by Long Yuxue's embrace, and right at that moment, an overwhelming sense of peril welled up in his heart, causing the hairs on the back of his neck to stand up on end.

He immediately wound an arm around Long Yuxue before abruptly leaping to the side and landing behind a sand dune.

"Boom!"

A violent explosion rang out from the distant sea, and Tang Wulin and Long Yuxue's ears immediately began to ring while all of the sounds in the surrounding area were drowned out. Immediately thereafter, the sand dune beside them exploded into countless grains of sand, and the violent shockwaves struck their bodies.

Tang Wulin reacted very quickly as a layer of golden scales instantly appeared over his skin, and at the same time, he used his own body to shield Long Yuxue. He borrowed the impact of the shockwaves to propel himself through the air and get further away from the epicenter of the explosion.

If a normal person had been in his shoes, they would've most likely already been torn to shreds by these powerful shockwaves, but with Tang Wulin's insanely powerful physical constitution, such an impact only acted as propulsion force for him.

However, right at this moment, both he and Long Yuxue were greeted by the sight of a gargantuan wave.

In that instant, it was as if the sky had become the sea, and they were flying over an empty world beneath the ocean; this was a very peculiar sight to behold.

Tang Wulin spread open his golden dragon wings and flapped them vigorously, sending himself hurtling through the air like a speeding arrow with Long Yuxue in his arms, but the giant wave had come far too abruptly and covered too large an area, so they were still struck by it in the end.

A faint blue light barrier silently appeared, and as the seawater crashed down upon them, Long Yuxue was shocked to discover that it was completely kept at bay by the barrier. A trident symbol had appeared on Tang Wulin's forehead, and the symbol was radiating faint blue light.

Tang Wulin was also quite perplexed by this himself, but that didn't affect his reactions at all. He flapped his golden dragon wings, propelling himself through the water and rising up into the air, but his body remained completely dry in the process.

At this point, all of the vulnerability in Tang Wulin's eyes had been replaced by a sharp and alert look.

He had been far too careless. His emotional fluctuations had been too violent, thereby clouding his sharp senses and preventing him from sensing this impending peril. This was also partially due to the fact that this perilous situation hadn't been specifically directed at him, but he still should've noticed it far sooner than he did.

At this moment, enormous waves were sweeping through the sea as if a tsunami had erupted. At the epicenter of the explosion in the distance, Tang Wulin could clearly see terrifying energy fluctuations exploding relentlessly in the air amid a string of resounding booms.

There were shimmering dark purple fragments in the air that were breaking down into even smaller pieces, and a massive vortex with a diameter of over a kilometer had appeared on the ocean with dark purple light flashing within it.