After being demoted, my 300,000-strong army trampled the imperial city!

Chen Futu discovered that not only Hua Hua, but the vast majority of people on this ship were spies sent by various forces. No wonder there were ships coming and going every now and then; it turned out they were cooperating with various forces to investigate the whereabouts of the treasure in Lizhou.

These people are not very strong; if they were too strong, they would attract the attention of other forces.

As the ancestral rites stated, there are suspected traces of imperial laws or imperial weapons in Lizhou, which are treasures that many forces dream of. In their eyes, Lizhou is a highly coveted prize, and everyone wants a piece of it.

As the emperor of the strongest power in Lizhou, Chen Futu felt a sense of urgency.

Hua Hua, her mouth full of cream cake, mumbled, "Chen Futu is quite a character. He forcefully reclaimed a vast territory and used the nation's fortune to suppress the trachoma. The major powers outside hate him to death. If there were no rules to restrict him, I'm afraid a quasi-emperor might slap the Central Plains to pieces and destroy this restless guy."

Quasi-Emperor...

Chen Futu clenched his fist. The weight of those two words was terrifying, far beyond what he could reach now. However, the Holy Emperor bore the hope of survival for the people of the entire Central Plains Dynasty and would not allow outsiders to destroy it!

"If one day I become the Great Emperor, I will surely exterminate all those who plot against Lizhou!"

Chen Futu made a vow in his heart.

Ding!

[The system has detected the host's ambition and willingness to step out of his comfort zone. A special reward has been issued: the Quasi-Emperor One-Strike Card.]

A purple card appeared in the system space; this was the Quasi-Emperor One-Strike Card.

Once thrown out, it can unleash a full-force attack from a quasi-emperor, with unimaginable power. It can be considered Chen Futu's biggest trump card at present.

The system is so sensible, I'm almost not used to it.

The ship continued to rock and sway westward.

The seawater seemed to have turned red, and the once cloudless sky had become gray, with the air filled with chaotic and violent fluctuations of true energy.

Hua Hua said, "Don't worry, we're almost at the middle line, which is also the most dangerous part of the strait."

"Danger?"

"There is a strange sight in the middle of the Red Bone Strait, where there are many white stone pillars surrounded by bloody energy that can affect people's spiritual world and even attract some powerful sea monsters to roam."

As they spoke, Chen Futu saw a red mist spreading across the distant sea, from which emerged gray-white stone pillars. At first glance, it looked as if a giant beast had died there, and the densely packed stone pillars were its ribs. After many years, its blood essence had not dissipated, transforming into this strange sight.

"Watch out, we're almost at the center line!"

The commander shouted, and Tong Yang also arranged for someone to pass on a message, telling everyone to be vigilant these next few days and to avoid any accidents.

Of course, Chen Futu and Huahua were also sent to their own rooms to rest and were not allowed to go out.

"System. What are those white stone pillars rising from the sea?"

The system has no comment.

“Even if you don’t tell me, I can roughly tell. According to the map, Lizhou should be an isolated island that was separated from the Northern Region. Perhaps it was destroyed in a great war in some era, and the giant beast should have perished at that time.”

The system has no comment.

"Never mind, we'll be in the Northern Region in a few days, and we'll see then."

Chen Futu sat cross-legged on the bed, continuing to study the Daoist Chapters of the Human Emperor.

In the capital, Chen Futu was naturally not idle either. The news of Yaoyue's dominance over the Southern Frontier and the destruction of Little Sumeru Mountain spread throughout the entire Li Continent. It can be said that no force dares to challenge the Great Xia now.

The next strategy for the Great Xia Dynasty was to subdue the small states near the Central Plains, and then vigorously develop people's livelihoods and improve the nation's fortune.

It is worth mentioning that Huang Yueying developed a steam locomotive, which put the laying of railway tracks on the agenda.

As for the four relics, Chen Futu gave them to the four beauties, who then began a deep retreat.

Boom, boom!

After the large ship entered the center line, it began to rock, as if something in the ocean was attacking the ship. Everyone on board was awakened, but the commander did not allow everyone to go out, so Chen Futu was too lazy to do anything. He just bought a kayak from the system store in case of emergency.

"Attack, attack quickly!"

There was a loud shout on deck; they had spotted the sea creature attacking the large ship.

Hua Hua knocked on Chen Futu's door, muttering nervously, "This doesn't look good. I've been on a boat more than once, but this is the first time I've encountered this situation."

"You've never been attacked before?"

"I've encountered them before, but never this intensely. It's as if something has angered those sea monsters."

Hua Hua paced back and forth in the room, giving Chen Futu a headache from her shaking. He said irritably, "What are you afraid of? With the commander and deputy commander here, there shouldn't be any trouble."

"Okay, do you have any more good food? In case something happens, I want to die with a full stomach." Hua Hua stretched out her hand.

Chen Futu was both amused and exasperated. "How could you eat something that's swaying so much?"

"Oh dear, eating is the most important thing!" Hua Hua stamped her feet, put her hands on her hips, and her fox ears twitched, looking quite adorable.

“That’s right, eat your fill. If you fall into the sea, even the sea monsters will find you delicious and juicy.” Chen Futu chuckled and gave her some pastries and juice as a reward for the information she had provided these past few days.

"You idiot, if you can't speak properly, just shut up."

Hua Hua sat down and started playing games with her head down. Seeing her wolfing down her food, I was really worried that she would throw up from the shaking.

As it turned out, they encountered trouble. The ship rocked more and more violently, and the roar of an unknown sea monster could be heard in the distance. The surging blood energy was terrifying to behold.

Chen Futu's initial estimate was that it was probably a giant ocean beast of the Great Venerable level.

This is a dominant force. Even if there are several powerful beings on the ship, they cannot defeat it in its home territory. Moreover, there are many other behemoths of various levels surrounding the ship.

The impact grew louder and louder, and Hua Hua was almost thrown off her feet. Chen Futu grabbed her small hand and used his sword to stabilize her.

"My God, what the hell is that?! Can we even get through?!"

Hua Hua was so surprised that she screamed.

She was a Martial Emperor, but she didn't have any of the aura of a Martial Emperor. In her panic, she didn't even forget to put a bite of cream pudding in her mouth.

"Silence!"

Chen Futu glared at her, and she shut her mouth, then transmitted her voice, "What's wrong?"

Chen Futu remained silent because there was a noise nearby, seemingly coming from beneath the surface of the sea a dozen meters away. The gurgling sound was extremely unsettling.

Before the thought could even form, a sudden, deafening crash nearly capsized the entire ship, and torrential rain and seawater poured into the room through the shattered windows.

If it weren't for the dragon sparrow pinning them to the ground, Chen Futu and Huahua would have crashed into the wall.

Looking outside again, Hua Hua covered her mouth in fright.

Chen Futu was also stunned.

Outside the window, an unknown sea monster stared intently at the two of them with its scarlet eyes, or rather, it was sizing up Chen Futu.

Its eyes were so gloomy.