Myriad Rivers to the Sea

The days following the grand wedding brought an organized rhythm to The Eternal Crucible. The festive banners of crimson and oceanic blue silk still fluttered in the warm winds but the reality of ruling an empire quickly settled over the victors.

Sovereign Morven stood in the main courtyard of the inner palace and let out a long suffering sigh. He wore his regal iridescent armor but his posture lacked its usual battle ready tension. He looked incredibly annoyed.

"I must return to the coast," Morven grumbled while crossing his massive arms. "My generals report several minor territorial disputes along the abyssal trenches and the administrative backlog is growing into a mountain. It seems my enemies thought my absence was an invitation to test the borders."

Ignis stood beside him and offered a sympathetic smile. Traditionally she would accompany him to his territory. It was expected for a newly married couple of their standing to make a grand return trip to show their unified strength to the other half of the empire.

"I cannot leave the capital just yet," Ignis said softly. "There is too much to do around here since the attack. The core arrays require my specific flames to properly set. All kinds of other issues need my presence as well. You will have to face the paperwork alone, my love."

Morven groaned again. The Lord of the Violet Deep would rather fight three invading armies than sit behind a desk and stamp trade ledgers. He turned his pale eyes toward Li Yu who was sitting nearby enjoying a cup of morning tea with Malos.

"Brother Li Yu." Morven called out with his booming voice returning. "The air here smells of ash and endless construction. I am returning to my territory with my core troops. Come with me. The seafood is unparalleled and the sea breeze will do your foundation good."

Li Yu paused with his teacup halfway to his mouth. He was actually quite interested in seeing the other half of this new massive empire. He was about to accept the invitation but the ancient Demon Lord sitting across from him beat him to it.

"We would be absolutely delighted to accompany you!" Malos cheered and clapped his hands together. The Lord of Foresight had decided to stick by Li Yu since Lana and Tuwark had already returned to their respective lives. "A trip to the coast sounds like the perfect remedy for the recent chaos."

Li Yu smiled and simply nodded. He was going to agree anyway.

The journey took only a single day via a warship. They could have gone faster but Morven was letting Li Yu take in some of the sights along the way. They left the volcanic mountains and ash plains behind. The temperature dropped steadily and the dry air was replaced by a thick, salty humidity that tasted of the deep ocean.

The warship broke through a thick layer of coastal fog and the capital of the Violet Deep revealed itself.

It was a breathtaking marvel of craftsmanship and natural wonder. The city was not built on a beach. It was carved directly into the side of a colossal cliff that dropped straight down into a churning violet ocean. Massive towers of polished pearl like material and dark coral jutted out over the crashing waves. Bioluminescent flora grew wildly along the cliff face and provided a soft, glowing light that illuminated the sprawling streets. Massive waterfalls cascaded from the upper levels of the city and dropped endlessly into the sea below.

As the warship docked at the highest royal pier, Morven stepped off the deck. He did not even get the chance to breathe in the salty air before disaster struck. A squad of frantic scribes rushed toward him carrying towering stacks of jade slips and parchment scrolls.

"Lord Morven!" The lead scribe gasped while bowing so low his forehead touched the pearl docks. "The northern kelp forests are demanding a new tariff agreement. The beast tamers require your blood seal for the new breeding programs and the abyssal merchants are protesting the recent tax hikes!"

Morven looked at the approaching paperwork with a mixture of dread and exhaustion. He turned to his guests and offered an apologetic grimace.

"The curse of the throne." Morven muttered before looking at one of his trusted commanders. "Commander Vaneer. Take my brother and Old Malos into the city. Show them the finest sights and the grandest markets. Do not let them want for anything."

Vaneer bowed deeply. The hulking scaled demon had fought Li Yu in the arena just days prior and held respect for the human wanderer. He had even more respect for Malos. "It will be my honor, Sovereign."

Morven was immediately swallowed by the sea of scribes and dragged toward the central palace. Vaneer led Li Yu and Malos down the winding coral pathways toward the lower commercial districts.

The capital was vibrant and bustling. The people of the Violet Deep were a diverse mix of aquatic demons, tide callers and abyssal merchants. The architecture was entirely fluid with no sharp corners or rigid walls. Everything was smoothed by the constant mist and the gentle roar of the ocean below.

They eventually arrived at a massive open air market located on a wide protruding shelf of petrified coral. The market was filled with merchants selling everything from deep sea creature meats to exotic spirit fish and rare oceanic pearls.

"This is the grand beast market," Vaneer explained while gesturing to the endless rows of crystal tanks and saltwater pools. "We breed and capture the finest aquatic life in the realm here."

Li Yu’s eyes lit up. Wherever he traveled he always made it a point to purchase local aquatic life to fill his Koi Sanctuary. He enjoyed cultivating a thriving diverse ecosystem within it and it was clear that he was getting benefits from it as well. It was a relaxing hobby that brought a sense of peace to his travels.

Taken from NovelFire, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

He walked through the market with Malos following closely behind. Li Yu approached a large stall managed by an older demon with pale blue skin and gills on his neck. The stall featured dozens of massive crystal tanks filled with colorful aquatic beasts.

Li Yu activated the subtle connection to his Koi Sanctuary and began selecting beasts. He pointed out dozens of low level silver scaled tuna and glowing deep sea crabs. These were purely for the ecosystem and for future meals. He then moved to the larger tanks and selected a few stronger beasts. He picked a pair of armored tiger sharks that possessed Foundation Establishment auras and a school of electric jellyfish that could provide ambient light in the deeper waters of his inner world.

The merchant tallied up the selections with a wide greedy smile. The total was a decent sum. Li Yu reached into his spatial ring to retrieve his currency.

Commander Vaneer instantly stepped forward and grabbed Li Yu's wrist. He gently but firmly pushed the human's hand down.

"Absolutely not," Vaneer said with wide panicked eyes.

"Commander it is just a few spirit stones" Li Yu tried to decline the generosity. He preferred to pay his own way when it came to personal hobbies.

"Brother Li Yu you do not understand." Vaneer pleaded and his voice dropped to a frantic whisper. "Sovereign Morven explicitly commanded that everything is covered by the Violet Deep. If he finds out I allowed his sworn brother to spend a single stone in his city he will hang me by my gills from the palace gates. Please do not make things harder for me."

Li Yu looked at the genuinely terrified commander and sighed. He put his stones away and nodded with a smile. "Very well. Add it to the Sovereign's tab."

Vaneer let out a sigh of relief and quickly handed the merchant a royal token to cover the cost. Li Yu waved his hand and transferred the purchased beasts directly into his Koi Sanctuary where they happily splashed into his inner ocean. Many thought he dragged them into a beast bag for storage.

As the transaction concluded, Li Yu noticed a separate shaded pool in the corner of the stall.

Three beautiful azure stingrays were swimming sluggishly in the shallow water. Their scales were incredibly dull and they kept bumping into the stone walls of the pool. In a neighboring tank a massive armored sea turtle with a shell made of volcanic rock was completely motionless with its head tucked inside.

The merchant noticed Li Yu looking and let out a heavy sigh. "A true shame really. They are excellent mounts for traversing the shallow reefs but they caught some kind of deep sea rot. I cannot figure out what is wrong with them and they cannot speak to tell me. I will likely have to put them down before it spreads."

Li Yu stepped closer to the pool. He had earned the nickname of the Quiet Physician back in his original realm for his incredible medical skills. He was a master beast physician and his Koi martial spirit allowed him a unique advantage when dealing with aquatic life.

He closed his eyes and summoned the subtle aura of his martial spirit. The Koi allowed him to form a basic telepathic emotional link with aquatic beasts that could not yet talk.

‘Pain in the gills. Water is too heavy. Cannot breathe.’

The simple instinctual thoughts of the stingrays echoed in Li Yu's mind. He shifted his focus to the armored sea turtle.

‘Shell is burning. Too much heat. Cannot cool down.’

Li Yu opened his eyes and tapped into his Laws of Life. He reached his hands into the shallow pool. The stingrays immediately swam toward him sensing his soothing life force. He gently touched their gills. He realized tiny parasites from the abyssal trenches had lodged itself in their respiratory tracts and were causing inflammation.

He channeled a tiny fraction of his Qi to safely kill the parasites without harming the hosts. He then used his Laws of Life to rapidly heal their inflamed tissue. Within seconds the three stingrays brightened. Their azure scales glowed with vibrant color and they began swimming with rapid joyful energy around Li Yu's hands.

Li Yu then moved to the sea turtle tank. He placed his hand on the volcanic rock shell. The beast had absorbed too much ambient fire Qi from a recent thermal vent eruption causing internal burning. Li Yu simply used his devouring arts to absorb the excess heat and then flushed the turtle's meridians with cooling water Qi. The massive turtle immediately popped its head out of its shell and let out a happy burbling noise.

The merchant dropped his ledger in absolute shock. "By the depths! How did you do that?"

Malos immediately stepped forward and puffed out his chest. He could see that Li Yu was a true master when it came to treating beasts. The Lord of Foresight had never been a medical assistant before but he was incredibly enthusiastic about trying something new.

"You are in the presence of a supreme master!" Malos declared dramatically while gesturing grandly toward Li Yu. "He is a Beast Physician! And I am his highly esteemed assistant, the Grand Prognosticator of Pills! We require no payment for such trivial matters but you should remember our titles!"

Li Yu smiled and shook his head at Malos's ridiculous antics. “I am called the Quiet Physician in my hometown.” It was actually from his original world but he didn’t care to explain all of that.

“In that case I will be the Shouting Assistant." Malos boomed to the stunned general and merchant.

Li Yu treated a few more sick fish in the surrounding tanks. It was mostly fixing minor Qi blockages and treating fungal infections. Malos hovered nearby eagerly. He was handing Li Yu clean towels and randomly shouting medical sounding advice to the bewildered merchant.

None of the beasts Li Yu helped were particularly valuable or rare but the merchant was thankful nonetheless. He bowed repeatedly and tried to offer Li Yu free supplies which Vaneer firmly intercepted and paid for anyway.

Commander Vaneer watched this entire display of beast healing with astonished eyes. He knew Li Yu was a terrifying combatant who could take an empowered Sovoreign’s soul attack but he had no idea the human possessed such esoteric and effective healing abilities.

As they walked away from the stall Vaneer approached Li Yu with a respectful expression.

"Brother Li Yu." Vaneer began hesitantly. "The Violet Deep military relies heavily on aquatic war beasts. They are incredibly strong because they permanently sacrifice their ability to take human form or learn speech in exchange for raw physical power or other special abilities. They are the vanguard of our underwater fleets."

Vaneer paused and looked hopeful. "Because they cannot communicate, treating their battle wounds and internal illnesses is notoriously difficult. Our own healers struggle to diagnose them properly. Would you be willing to visit the military pens and check out a few of our war beasts?"

Li Yu thought about the vast martial knowledge he had gained from the generals just days prior. They had freely shared their understanding of the laws with him. It was only fair to return the favor and help their military in his own way.

"I would be happy to take a look, Commander." Li Yu agreed with a warm smile. "Lead the way to the pens."